Full text of "The Rock of Ages : or Scripture testimony to the one eternal Godhead of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost"

LIBRARY

v/i ./

"Presented to

ycliffe (Allege,

oronto ;

By the Baroness Burdett=doutts ?
ctober, 1386.

TEE ROCK OF AGES.

THE ROCK OF AGES;

OR,

SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY

ONE ETERNAL GODHEAD

OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SOX,
AND OF THE HOLY GHOST.

EDWARD HENRY BICKERSTETH, M.A.,

IN-COMBENT OP CHRIST CHORCH, HAMPSTEAD.

"COMPARING SPIRITUAL TKIKGS AVITH SPIRITUAL. "

1 Cos. it. 13.

gl Hcto anb gUttseb Cbhion.

LONDON:
THE RELIGIOUS TEACT SOCIETY,

56 PATERNOSTER Row, C5 ST. PAUL S CHURCHYARD,
AND 164 PICCADILLY.

it Steitarrm of

AND TO ANY OTHERS "WHO CONFESS OR CONCEAL DOUBTS
IU:&lt;;ARDING; THE MYSTERIES OE THE FAITH,

THIS TREATISE,

ACCOMPAMKI) AV1T1I MANY PRAYERS,
IS. IN ALL HUMILITY, ADDRESSED BY

THE AUTHOR.

PREFACE,

THE title-page of this Treatise may sufficiently indicate the
line of argument I have attempted to pursue. My standard
of reference throughout has been the memorable precept.
" Trust ye in the Lord for ever, for in the Lord Jehovah is
the Rock of Ages." (Isai. xxvi. 4.) That the one Infinite
God claims our supreme and undivided confidence ; that the
same confidence is, on the warrant of Scripture, to be reposed
in the Father, and in the Son, and in the Holy Ghost ; and
that therefore Father, Son, and Spirit are equally God over
all, blessed for ever, the Triune Jehovah, in whose name
alone we trust, on whose arm we rely, and whose majesty we
alone adore and love : such is the brief outline of a train of
thought indelibly impressed many years ago on my own mind.

Local circumstances, to which I allude in my opening
chapter, induced me lately to commit these thoughts to
paper. I intended to write only a brief pamphlet. But I
found that proofs from the written word accumulated upon
me so rapidly, that I could not duly sketch this most mo
mentous of subjects in so cursory a way. I therefore suffered
Scripture as it were to lead me by the hand ; until, by com
piling and illustrating Bible evidence alone, my little essay
swelled to nearly its present dimensions. And, when the

viii PKEFACE.

rough draught of my manuscript was to some extent com
pleted, I did not scruple to avail myself of the labours of
those authors, to which I have from time to time referred, so
far as my limited leisure permitted me to consult them. I
especially allude to Dr. Pye Smith s " Scripture Testimony
to the Messiah : " my readers will find how much I am in
debted to that truly learned and elaborate work. I would
also mention a short but valuable treatise, now out of print,
by the late Mr. Serjeant Sellon ; D wight s Theology, vol. ii. ;
Wardlaw s Discourses ; Serle s Horae Solitaries ; Lectures at
Christ Church, Liverpool ; Scholefield s Hints ; Dr. Gordon s
Supreme Godhead of Christ ; and Jones Catholic Doctrine of
a Trinity : though to many of these authors I have only been
able to refer, as isolated passages led me to desire to know
their judgment on contested interpretations. And here I
cannot refrain from expressing my grateful obligations to my
learned and judicious friend, the Rev. John Ayre, who most
kindly looked through the proof-sheets of the first edition,
and gave me, on several difficult passages of Scripture, the
benefit of his extensive reading. With respect to the last-
mentioned book, " Jones Catholic Doctrine," which contains
so much in so brief a space, I had not seen it until my
treatise was almost finished. His system of proof is in some
respects similar to mine : but even my threefold comparison
in the last chapter of this work, which resembles his arrange
ment the nearest, was commenced, before the possession of his
work enabled me to enrich this, and two or three earlier
sections likewise, with some most apposite quotations gleaned
by him from the word of God. I mention this only to show
that my collection of Scriptural evidence was, in the main,
independent ; for in such a subject, of all others, claims of

PREFACE. IX

originality can have no place. Here eminently, nolva TO.
TU&gt;V &lt;j)i\tai&gt;. But while speaking of other writers, may I be
permitted to urge any, who do not know them, to study some
essays " On the Religions of Man and the Religion of God,"
by the late Professor Vinet, of Lausanne ? a Space alone
prevented my quoting at the close of this book a large portion
of his admirable remarks on the mysteries of Christianity.
He is not unjustly called the Chalmers of Switzerland.

But after all, our appeal must be to One Book. I have
honestly tried to understand the views of sincere Unitarians ;
but I can come to no other conclusion, than that, while some
times freely using the language of Scripture with respect to
our Lord, they regard him only as a most highly exalted and
Divinely endowed CREATURE. In a word, to them he is not
God. And therefore, on their hypothesis, if men trust in
him for eternal salvation, reposing their entire confidence
in him, they are trusting in a creature, which is idolatry.
(Jer. xvii. 5 8.) Whereas if they do not so trust in him,
they are rejecting the only name under heaven given among
men whereby we must be saved. (Acts iv. 12.) From this
disastrous alternative I see no possible escape.

I rejoice to think, however, they are bound down by no
definite creed of error. They are, to use their own emphatic
expression, * a drifting body. Oh that it might please God
that the movement amongst the American Unitarians might
spread to our own land ! And whilst they profess to draw
their faith from the oracles of truth, who can despair of their

* The work is called " Vital Christianity : " and is translated by an
American pastor. It is published in a very cheap form, by W. Collias,
Paternoster Row, London.

FKEFACE.

being brought back to the one flock, and the one Shepherd ?
For "the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; 5
" the entrance of thy words giveth light ; " the sword of the
Spirit is the word of God." In the humble hope that some
may be led to search anew, and to believe at last the Scrip
tures which testify of Jesus, these pages have been written ;
and utterly disclaiming aU confidence in any other weapons,
my one prayer is that the Divine Spirit may cast down imagina
tions and every high thing that exalteth itself against the
knowledge of God, and may bring into captivity every
thought to the obedience of Christ.

CUIUST CHURCH PARSONAGE, HAMPSTEAD.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I. Introduction. Preparation of heart. Our position before
God. p. 1 S.

CHAPTER. II. That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament alike,
detaches our ultimate confidence from man the creature, and attaches
it to God the Creator ;

by contrasting the sinfulness and feebleness of mortal man with

the goodness and omnipotence of the Eternal Jehovah :
by direct prohibition and precept :
by exhibiting the holy Jealousy of God. p. 9 15.

CHAPTER III. That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament alike,
requires us to repose our ultimate confidence in the Lord Jesus Christ :
as One who is distinct from the Father :

as One to whom all the attributes of essential Deity are ascribed :

as One whose infinite perfections claim supreme trust, adoration,

and love. p. 1630.

CHAPTER IV. That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament alike,
proves the coequal Deity of Jesus Christ with that of the eternal
Father ;

by a comparison of the attributes, the majesty, and the claims of

the Father and the Sou :

by the appearances of God to the Old Testament saints :
by the direct and Divine worship paid to Christ :
by the conjunction of the Father and the Son in Divine offices :
by explicit assertions that Christ is Jehovah and God.

p. 3082.

Xll CONTENTS.

CHAPTER V. That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament alike,
presents to us the incarnation and the mission of the Saviour, as the
extremity of condescension in Jehovah, that thereby he might exalt
us to everlasting life.

The Scriptural order to be observed in this inquiry .

The moral and spiritual majesty of the incarnation of Christ.

The examination of those passages which assert his humanity by

the light of others which assert his Divinity.
The derived glory to which he raises believers compared with his
own essential glories. p. 82 110.

CHAPTER VI. That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament alike,
proves the coequal Godhead of the Holy Spirit with that of the Fa
ther and of the Son :

as One who is to be distinguished from the Father and the Son :
as One to whom such personal properties and actions are assigned

as prove independent and intelligent personality :
as One to whom Divine attributes are ascribed and by whom

Divine offices are exercised :

as One worshipped in parity with the Father and the Son :
as One declared to be Jehovah and God. p. 110135.

CHAPTER VII. That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament alike,
assures us that in the trustful knowledge of One God, the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Ghost, is the spiritual life of man now and
for ever.

On the mysteries of faith.

On the revealed evidences of faith.

On creeds or definitions of faith.

On the obedience of faith,

On the full satisfaction of faith. p. 136168.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAPTER I.

A DEEP conviction that many, who refuse to acknow- r n \r. i.
ledge the Godhead of our Lord Jesus Christ, have
never duly examined one line of Scriptural argument
which presents to my own mind the most conclusive
evidence of this foundation truth, induces me, though
" in weakness and in fear and in much trembling," to
ask their patient and prayerful perusal of this Treatise.
My hesitation arises not from the least doubt of the
security of the doctrine, but from consciousness how
unequal I am to do justice to the proofs which establish
it, from a most affectionate concern for the souls of
those to whom I write, and from a deep assurance that
in the rejection or cordial acceptance of this truth are
bound up the issues of eternal death or eternal life. -"ioim i;" 1;

I am well aware that many larger and more elaborate
treatises, written by far abler advocates, are within
their reach ; but sometimes, an essay written by a
neighbour will be read with courteous interest when
volumes of far deeper research are passed by. And
my lot has been cast where many Unitarians a reside :
their acts of kindness and benevolence are continually

* I use the word " Uiiitarians " as the distinctive name they
have assumed ; but under protest, that it does not fairly set forth
the points at issue betwixt us, if for no other reason, for this, that
\ve cleave to the Unity of God as tenaciously as they.

2 THE HOCK OF AGES.

CHAP. I.

making themselves felt amongst us ; and proofs are

multiplied on every side of their own mental culture v
and of their desire for the moral elevation of the poor.
Who that delights in things lovely and of good report
can refrain from loving their excellences? I long
over them ; and yet my opportunities of intercourse
are of necessity casual and limited. Hence, if it will
not seem presumptuous, I know not how better to ac
count for my present Address than in the language of

Rom. x. i. S. Paul on behalf of his kinsmen, " Brethren, my
heart s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they
might be saved."

Another motive weighs with me ; (may I ask the
reader s forgiveness for any personal allusion ?) but I
believe few can have passed through years of more
incessant spiritual conflict than myself, and this long
after I had embraced the gospel with the affections of
my soid. Apparent Scriptural contradictions stag
gered me ; for I found to my cost the Tempter could

Matt. iv. c. assail us as he assailed our Master, saying, "It is
written." The battle raged over the whole field of
revealed truth, though chiefly around the central fact
of our holy faith, the Divinity of the Son of God.
The Bible was my only sword, prayer my only resource,
until, through the infinite mercy of God, those very
truths around which sceptical doubts had once clustered
most thickly, became the strongest bulwarks to which,
when assailed on other points, I used to resort. Since
that time, in the course of my ministry during the last
twelve years, I have had many difficulties brought before
me by Unitarians and others, but scarcely ever a per
plexity which had not been suggested to my own mind,
and over which I had not fought oftentimes a painful
fight. So that at least I can say with Virgil s heroine
" Xun ignara mali, miseris succurrere disco ; "

THE ROCK OF AGES. 3

CHAP. I.

and I can conceive no purer joy on earth than that of
being permitted to lead some other tempest-tossed spirit
to that faith, where I have found security and peace.
Those I address will at least find here no artificial
fencing, for I am no trained swordsman in this contro
versy ; but sometimes it has pleased God to overcome
gigantic error, not by the skilful gladiator clad in the
panoply of learning, but by a few smooth stones from
the sling of a shepherd boy.

And hero, if any earnest student designs to give me
his attention, I would ask him to pause, and to pour
out his heart in prayer that he may be guided into all
truth. Such an inquirer feels with me, that eternal
life is wrapped up in the knowledge of " the only true
God," and of "Jesus Christ, whom He hath sent ;" Joim\. ;.;.
that " God is, and that he is a re warder of them that
diligently seek him ; " and will therefore feel no HCK *i. &lt;;.
difficulty in uniting with me in such or such like peti
tions, every clause of which is taken from Scripture :

"Almighty God, the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who inhabitest eternity, who dwellest in EPU. i. :;.
the high and holy place, but with him also who is of a
contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the
humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones, isai. K:;. i.-,.
grant me to understand the fear of the Lord, and to Prov. \\. -..
find the knowledge of God. I cannot by searching Joo xi. :.
find out Thee unto perfection, the King eternal, im- i Tim. i. IT.
mortal, invisible. But look down from heaven, and
behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy isai. \\a\. i:&gt;
glory. Doubtless thou art my Father. Show mercy
upon me, and be gracious unto me. Search me, EXIKI. xxxui.
God, and know my heart : try me, and know my i sa.
thoughts, and see if there be any way of grief in me, s il1
and lead me in the way everlasting. I plead the
promise of Jesus, If ye being evil know how to give

4 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. I.

good gifts to your children, how much more shall

Luke xi. is. your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them
that ask him ? Hear me speedily, Lord, hide not

Psa. cxiiii. 7, io. thy face from me : thy Spirit is good : lead me ; for
I ask in the name of Jesus, who is able to save to the
uttermost those that come unto Thee by him, seeing

Heb. vii. 25. h e ever Kveth to make intercession for them ; and who
hath said, Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that

John xiv. Ki. will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son."
Oh, solemn and blessed pursuit ! We are seeking
the Lord. Strip the words, I pray you, of every un
meaning association, and yield your whole being, un
derstanding, heart, conscience, will, to the momentous
inquiry. Let us humble ourselves with the recollec
tion, " Verily, thou art a God that hidest thyself, O

isai. xir. ir,. God of Israel, the Saviour/ Let us encourage our
selves with the quickly succeeding assurance, " I said
ver. i-j. not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain." Thus,
though there will, there must be, in the self- revelation
of Him whose ways are past finding out, mysteries
beyond the reach and range of our finite capacities,
all necessary and saving knowledge is promised to the
humble student ; for the words of the Psalmist have
lost nothing of their significance by the lapse of time,
Though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto

Psa.cxxsviii.6. the lowly; but the proud he knoweth afar off;" and
again, "The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a
broken heart, and saveth such as be of a contrite

i sa. xxxiv. is. spirit."

These words point to a preparation of the heart. I
ask not then, my friends, that you should inquire first
of all into the nature of God s mysterious Being, the
Divinity of Jesus Christ, and the personality of the
Holy Spirit. There is a prior investigation which de
mands your earnest heed, and which, pursued with

THE ROCK OP AGES. 5

CHAP. 1.

prayerful study of the word of God, will, by his grace,
awaken and cultivate that disposition of mind which is
fitted for the after inquiry. Starting from those truths
you acknowledge, What, I ask, is your relation to God,
what your position before him as recorded in Scripture ?
You admit that God is the Supreme Creator, and
Father, and Governor, and Judge of all men. You
confess that he is infinitely holy, and just, and good.
You acknowledge that he is himself perfect love, and
must of necessity require the perfect love of his crea
tures for the sake of his own glory and of their hap
piness. That grand epitome of his righteous code
of government commends itself to your inmost con
science, " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all
thy strength, and with all thy mind ; and thy neigh
bour as thyself." If you look higher than man to the Luke x. 27
pure intelligences around the throne of glory, you can
conceive no other law binding together the perfect
society of heaven. It is the utterance of the mind of
the blessed God. But now, looking abroad as a prac
tical and thoughtful man upon the world as it is, what
meets your eye ? Selfishness, misery, discord, enmity,
rebellion ; in one word, sin. Some sights of woe move
you to compassionate tears, and your heart is wrung
for the calamities of human kind : some deeds of
rapine excite in you a righteous indignation, and you
exclaim, " Such atrocities worthily deserve to be pun
ished." You are pitiful and you are just. But re
member your sense of pity and of equity is only a
faint reflection from that in the bosom of the infinite
Jehovah. His compassions fail not. His righteous- i^m. in. 22.
ness is everlasting. He is Father, and Legislator, p sa . C xix. u
and Judge in one. Sin violates every obligation : it
wounds the heart of the eternal Father. Listen to

6 THE ROCK OF AGES.

C BAP. I.

his pathetic appeal, " Hear, heavens, and give ear,
O earth : for the Lord hath spoken, I have nourished
and brought up children, and they have rebelled
against me." It sets at nought the wise regulations
of the Lawgiver. He complains, " I gave them my
statutes, and showed them my judgments, which if a
man do, he shall even live in them. Notwithstanding
the children rebelled against me : they walked not in

Ezek.xx.-u, my statutes, neither kept my judgments to do them."
It is provoking the judicial condemnation of Him who
now expostulates, Kiiowest thou not " that the good
ness of God leadeth thee to repentance ? but after thy
hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto
thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation
of the righteous judgment of God ; who will render to

Rom. ii. 4 c. every man according to his deeds."

To inquire then what is the nature of sin, its cha
racter, course, and issue, is only the part of a rational,
intelligent being. But herein, especially, it behoves
us to lay aside all prejudice and pride, to remember
how distasteful all revelations of our own corruptions
must be to the natural heart, and to reflect that the
plague, the diagnosis of which we would learn, itself
impairs our perceptive faculties. Here, then, let us

Miiu.xviii.s, 4. humble ourselves as a little child. Here, as we open
the sure word of God, let us answer with Samuel of

i sum. Hi. 9. old, " Speak, Lord ; for thy servant heareth." And
here, if the probe cut deep, let us be assured, "Faithful

Prov. xxvii. e. are the wounds of a friend," and loving is the correc
tion of a Father who smites that he may heal and

nai. ixi. i. " bind up the broken-hearted."

This evil of sin is not superficial, but radical. It
pervades human life from the cradle to the grave :
" Behold, I was shapen in iniquity ; and in sin did my
mother conceive me. The thought of foolishness is

THE ROCK OF AGES. 7

C Hir. I.

sin. Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child. Prov.m. is.
The imagination of man s heart is evil from his youth. en. viu. 21.
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately Jer. x\u. 9.
wicked. From within, out of the heart of men, pro
ceed evil thoughts .... all these evil tilings come J ar L vii .

o &lt;j .1 _o.

from within, and defile the man."

This evil is not partial, but universal. None have
escaped from it. " There is not a just man upon ECCI. \\\. 20.
earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not. There is Rom. in. i.
none righteous, no, not one. All the world becomes ver. m.
guilty before God. All have sinned, and come short ver. 2:;.
of the glory of God."

Tli is evil is not self- remedial ; but so far as lies in
man, incurable. " Who can bring u clean thing out of JM--XXX. i.-..
an unclean: Not one. How then can man be just J .i.xiv. i.
with God? or how can he bo clean that is born of a j&lt;&gt;i&gt;xxv. 4.
woman? Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the
leopard his spots? then may ye also do good that are .Tn-.xiii.2n.
accustomed to do evil."

This evil is fatal. " In the day that thou catest there- Gt!n . \\. n.
of dying thou shalt die," was the warning of faithful
love to Adam, and upon the fall moral and spiritual
death marched like a pestilence through man s noble
soid. The land was as the garden of Eden before it,
and behind it a desolate wilderness. Hence disc-as-/
and decay, those symbols of a deeper malady. " And
sin, when it is finished, bringcth forth death. Death JWMSLIS.
passes upon all men, for that all have sinned." And to KOU&gt;. v. 12.
those who die in their sins, tin s death of the body is
the awful introduction of that second death, of which
the apostle writes, " Whosoever was not found written KCV. x*. n, 15
in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."

Let iis then return to the question, What is our own
position by nature before God ? (0 merciful Father,
teach me who write, and those who read, these lines to

8 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. I.

know ourselves.) Does not that law of perfect love
condemn us ? does it not bring- us in guilty before
Him whose eyes are as a flame of fire ? have not we
rebelled against the majesty of Jehovah ? have we
not deeply wounded the paternal heart of Him who is
infinite love ? Alas, we have not escaped this uni
versal corruption. We are convicts, self- condemned.
We are sinners. Oh, to realize the true meaning of
the word ! When a man sins against his fellow, a
child against his parent, a servant against his master,
we appreciate the guilt. But who shall estimate the
ingratitude of sin against God ? All other facts are
trivial compared with this we are sinners for sin
uncleansed and unchecked is present defilement and
final death.

Such is our position : a humiliating one in truth to
the awakened conscience : guilty, and therefore crav
ing pardon ; weak, and therefore casting about for
help ; in darkness, and therefore crying out for light.
What must I do to be saved ? Until this is answered,
every other question is a grand impertinence saved
from sin, its guilt, its power, its issue ? Lord, to
whom shall we go ? the cry pierces heaven, and
reaches the throne of the Eternal. Lord, to whom
shall we go ? and the response is given in the lively
01 acles of truth : " There is no God else beside me ; a
just God and a Saviour ; there is none beside me.
Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the
sai. xiv.2i,2a earth: for I am God, and there is none else."

CHAPTER II.

AND this brings me to the first great proposition I
would establish

That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament
alike, detaches our ultimate confidence from man, the
creature, and attaches it to God, the Creator.

This is enforced by three parallel lines of truth, (1)
by contrasting the sinfulness and feebleness of mortal
man with the goodness and omnipotence of the Eter
nal Jehovah ; (2) by direct prohibition and precept ;
(3) by declaration of the awful jealousy of the Creator,
if any creature usurp his position in our affiance and
in our regard.

(1) The most casual glance at the contrast testimony
of Scripture might convince us that such is the design
of God.

CHAP. II.

TVe are but of yesterday, and know
nothing, because our days iipon
earth are a shadow. Jab viii. 9.

Ye are not able to do that thing which
is least. Luke xii. 26.

How much less in them that dwell in
houses of clay, whose foundation
is in the dust, which are crushed
before the moth. Job iv. 19.

The thoughts of man are vanity
Psalm xciv. 11.

B 2

Thou art from everlasi ing. P\. .\eiii.2.
All things naked to his eyes.- Ih-b.

iv. 13.
lie inhabitcth eternity. Jsai. hii. 15.

2.,

"W ith God all things are possible.
Matt. xix. 20.

3.
The heaven of heavens cannot contain

thee. 1 Kinys viii. -21.
God is a Spirit. Join iv. 2i.
The Lord God omnipotent -Rer. xix. 6.

The counsel of Jehovah standeth for
ever : the thoughts of his .teart
to all generations. Psalm xxxiii.
11.

THE KOCK OF AGES.

Scripture Testimony of Man.

He turneth wise men backward, and
maketh their knowledge foolish
Isai. xliv. 25.

All flesh is grass, and all the goodli-
ness thereof is as the flower of the
field. Isai. si. 0.

There is none righteous, no, not one.
Rom. \\i. 10.

The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately wicked : who can
know it ? Jer. xvii. 9.

Man looketh on the outward appear
ance. 1 Sam. xvi. 7.

8.
A man that shall die. Isai. li. 12.

In Him we live, and move, and have
our being. Ads xvii. 28.
10.

Woe unto him that striveth with his
Maker ! Shall the clay say to
him that fashioneth it, What
inakest thou ? Isai. xiv. 9.

Scriptttre Testimony to God.

The immutability of his counsel. licit.
vi. 17.

The eternal God. Deut. xxxiii. 27.
The glory of Jehovah shall endure for
ever. Psalm civ. 31.

There is none good but one, that is,
God. Matt. xix. 17.

7.
God is light, and in him is no darkness

at all. 1 John i. 5.
I the Lord search the heart. Jer.

xvii. 10.

But the Lord looketh on the heart.
1 Sam. xvi. 7-
8.

Who only hath immortality. 1 Tim.
vi. 16.

The father hath life in himself.
John v. 26.

10.
I have made the earth, and created man

upon it. Isai. xlv. 12.
He fashioneth the hearts (of the sons
of men) alike. Psalm xxxiii. 15.

CHAP. II.

This testimony might be almost indefinitely pro
longed : the above may suffice. But I would venture
to draw your attention to three or four passages, where
the contrast is forced upon our notice by the sacred
writer himself.

If, for example, we turn to the prayer of Moses, he
reposes supreme trust in the Eternal : " Lord, thou
hast been our dwelling-place in all generations. Before
the mountains were brought forth, or ever thoii hadst
formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting

THE ROCK OF AGES. li

CHAP. II.

to everlasting, thou art God;" and contrasts this ira- i-sa. *c. 1,2.
mutability of the Most High with the brief life of men :
" They are as a sleep : in the morning they are like
grass which groweth up. In the morning it flourish-
eth, and groweth up ; in the evening it is cut down,
and withereth." b This was the lesson so often and so vere. -1.6.
painfully taught to Israel of old, by a Father s solemn
chastisements and forgiving love. From frequent
expostulations I select one : " Woe to them that go
down to Egypt for help ; and stay on horses, and trust
in chariots, because they are many ; and in horsemen,
because they are very strong ; but they look not unto
the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord." And i*i&gt;. \x*i. i.
what is the reason given ? " Xow the Egyptians are
men, and not God ; and their horses flesh, and not
Spirit." And what is the urgent entreaty founded vor. s.
thereon? "Turn ye unto Him from whom the chil
dren of Israel have deeply revolted." Again, this V,T. e.
message is sent to captive Zion : "I, even I, am lie
that comforteth you : who art thou, that thoii
shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the
son of man which shall be made as grass ; and forget -
test the Lord thy Maker, that hath stretched forth the
heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth." Ob- isai ;;. i:-, is
serve, in all these passages, how much stress is laid on
the creatiA e power of God as proof of his infinite pre
eminence. The Maker alone is mighty to save. And
if it be so in temporal deliverances, how much more
in respect of that eternal salvation which must engross
the regards of every thoughtful man, seeing that the
Psalmist says of the rich men of earth, " None of them

b I would pray the reader to compare the way in which this
same figure, this parable to all nations, is enlarged upon in Isaiah
xl. 6 8, and is enforced in the New Testament, 1 Pet. i. 24;
James i. 10, 11.

12 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. n.

can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God

a ransom for him, for the redemption of their eoul is

psa. xiix. r, s. precious." " But God," as he shortly after cries in

the rebounding exultation of faith, " God will redeem

my soul from the power of the grave : for he shall

ver. is. receive me."

(2) Furthermore, the prohibitions and precepts are
direct and express. " Put not your trust in princes,
nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. His
breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth ; in that
very day his thoughts perish. Happy is he that hath
the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the
Lord his God : which made heaven, and earth, the sea,

Psa. cxivi. 3-. and all that therein is : which keepeth truth for ever."
So again, Isaiah, having spoken of the fear of the Lord
and of the glory of his majesty, says, " Cease ye from
man, whose breath is in his nostrils : for wherein is he

isai. ii. 22. to be accounted of ? " I need not multiply passages
to prove that the explicit commands of Scripture with
one consentient voice require in the words of S. Peter,

i Pet. j. 21. that our " faith and hope be in God."

(3) But nothing can prove this fundamental truth
more solemnly than the words heard by Moses on
Sinai, " Thou shalt worship no other god : for the

Exod.xxxi\.i4. Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God."
Jealousy, as usually understood, is that peculiar un
easiness which arises from the fear that another may
rob us of our due honour or affection. And with
fallen man towards his fallen fellows this attribute
of our being, from taking an exaggerated view of
our own rights and claims, from unduly depreciating
those of others, and frequently from xmjustly sus
pecting their innocent conduct, becomes the readiest
vent for the outflowings of selfishness. And hence
the ill name of jealousy. But not always even among

THE ROCK OF AGES. 13

CHAP. II.

men. Thus we speak of a man, jealous for the fair
name and best interests of his friend ; as S. Paul
says of the Corinthians, " I am jealous over you with
godly jealousy." And thus a man may be justly 2Cor. XL 2.
jealous of his own reputation, that " good name which
is rather to be chosen than great riches." In this use PTOV xxii. i.
it is closely allied to self-respect, and springs from a
due sense of our own position and powers, of the claims
which we have upon others, and of those mutual
obligations, domestic, social, national, which lie upon
us all. Now, in a sinless world, this estimate would
be exactly true, and these requirements every moment
perfectly satisfied. But when sin breaks in, the claims
of man on man are violated ; and justice of necessity
conceives a holy anger and a pure indignation at that
which is unjust and unequal. We see a broken frag
mentary image of it in man, like the sun struggling
through mist, and reflected on agitated waters. But
in God it is without fault, or flaw, or cloud. He has
an absolutely perfect knowledge of his own supreme
majesty and goodness : he forms an absolutely perfect
estimate of the claims that supremacy has on his
creatures : and he conceives an absolutely perfect
jealousy when those obligations are set at nought.

Now, the Lord declares himself to be Self- Existent
from eternity, Omnipresent, Immutable, Almighty,
Incomprehensible, Omniscient, the Good One, the
Holy One, the Creator, Preserver, and Administrator
of all things in heaven and earth, the Searcher of
hearts, and the most high Judge of all. These attri
butes, indeed, would appertain to him as governing a
world which sin has never defiled, and sorrow never
darkened, and death never desolated. But when man
had broken his commands, and trodden the seductive
paths of disobedience and guilt, the Lord gives a

THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. II.

Isai. xivi. 4.

Pent. vi. 4, 5.
x. 20, 21 ;

(".lurch
Catechism.

Isai. xlii. 8.

7er. xvii. 5 S.

further and deeper revelation of his Divine goodness
and grace. He reveals himself as the only Being
who forgives iniquitv, transgression, and sin, as the
only Refuge for the fugitive, as the only Saviour,
Deliverer, and Redeemer of his people.

Further, He claims the supreme dependence, love,
worship, and service of his creatures. This you would
not for a moment deny, so that you could without
scruple subscribe to the language of the church of
England, " My duty towards God is to believe in him,
to fear him, and to love him with all my heart, with all
my mind, with all my soul, and with all my strength ;
to worship him, to give him thanks, to put my whole
trust in him ; to call upon him, to honour his holy
name and his word, and to serve him truly all the
days of my life."

But how does He regard it, if any creature usurp
his rightful prerogatives, and steal away the homage
of our hearts from Him who says, " I am Jehovah :
that is my name ; and my glory will I not give to an
other ?" Let me answer in the language of Scripture:
" Thus saith the Lord ; Cursed be the man that trust-
eth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart
departeth from the Lord : for he shall be like the
heath in the desert, and shall not see when good
cometh ; but shall inhabit the parched places in the
wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed
is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope
the Lord is : for he shall be as a tree planted by the
waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river,
and shall not see when heat cometh ; but her leaf shall
be green; and shall not be careful in the year of
drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."

It is impossible in a brief treatise to exhibit the
strength of this declaration. These verses do not

THE ROCK OF AGES. 15

CHAP. II.

stand isolated from the rest of Scripture. They only
gather up and present to us, in a few words, its con
current testimony from Genesis to Revelation. (0
Lord, cleanse Thou the thoughts of our hearts from
all creature confidence, by the inspiration of thy Holy
Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily
magnify thy holy name.) For this truth stands on
the fore-front of the temple of religion : " I am God,
and there is none else." The dedication stone bears isai. xu-j. a.
this golden inscription " To the Alone, Supreme,
Eternal Jehovah." And as you bow low within its
holy precincts, this is the first and great command
ment " Thou shalt have none other gods but Me."
And the response of every faithful worshipper is in
the spirit of the Levitical adoration " Lord our
God, blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted
above all blessing and praise. Thou, even thou, art
Lord alone : thou hast made heaven, the heaven of
heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things
that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and
thou preservest them all ; and the host of heaven
worshippeth thee. Thou art the Lord." Such ador- X.K *. -.-7.
at ion as is re-echoed in the courts of heavenly glory
" Thou art worthy, Lord, to receive glory and
honour and power ; for thou hast created all things,
and for thy pleasure they are, and were created." jfcv.iv. n.

CHAPTER III.

CHAP. in. I WOULD proceed then to my second proposition :

That Scripture, in the Old and New Testament
alike, requires us to repose our ultimate confidence in
the Lord Jesus Christ.

Or in other words, I maintain that Scripture brings
before us One mysterious Person, the Son of God, the
Son of man, in wondrous union with the Father, but
of distinct personality from the Father, to whom all
the attributes of Deity are ascribed, and who claims
and receives, without protest, yea, as his just and
inalienable right, equal trust, adoration, love, and
service, with him who says, " I am Jehovah, my Name
is Jealous, and my glory will I not give to another."

If this be proved, it will appear that the dignity of
Christ stands at an INFINITE distance above that of
any created being whatsoever, and is ON A PERFECT
LEVEL with that of the Increate Father. My whole
argument indeed challenges the views of Arians as
well as those of Unitarians. I am the more anxious
to state tliis explicitly because in a most courteous
answer which has appeared to the first edition of this
work, the author says " The chief respect in which
you make me feel how little insight you have into our
actual position is that you over and over again state
or imply that we believe Christ to be a mere man."
I had, however, guardedly stated in my preface that

c Gloria Patri, ly the Rev. Dr Sadler. I would take this op
portunity of expressing my sense of the great urbanity which
marks this reply ; though the author has not even attempted to
grapple with my main propositions, nor erected, so far as I am
aware, any new defences of Unitarianism other than those which
have been often proved untenable.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 17

CRAP. III.
those whose opinions I was controverting regarded

Christ only as a most highly- exalted and divinely-
endowed CREATURE : that, in a word, to them he was
not God. To this I apprehend all Unitarians would
subscribe. Thus Dr Sadler quotes with approval the
words, " The Father bears a likeness to the Son whom
He has created." And a review in " the Enquirer "
of both works says, " In Dr Sadler s treatise there is,
we need hardly observe, no attempt to retaliate the
charge of idolatry, because they worship one whom ice
regard as a creature." Now it is, in my judgment, of
little moment what degree of creature- eminence you
concede to the Lord Jesus, if you deny his Deity : for
after all, whatever difference exists betwixt the Infinite
Creator and a finite creature must still in your view
exist betwixt God and Christ. But at all events, the
propositions which I have drawn out on the broad
basis of Scripture combat every view which denies
that STJCII AS THE FATHER is, srcn is THE SON, AND
srrii is THE HOLY GHOST.

That the personality of the Father and the Son is
distinct, and that they are neither to be identified nor
confounded, is so self-evident a truth, and is so seldom
denied by those to whom I write, that two or three
Scripture proofs will abundantly suffice. At his bap
tism and transfiguration the voice of the Father was
heard saying of him, " This is my beloved Son, in Matt . \\\. n,
whom I am well pleased." Jesus addresses his Father m
in prayer. Jesus says, "It is written in your law,
that the testimony of two men is true. I am one that
bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me
beareth witness of me : " and further, which is incon- John viii. 17,

trovertible evidence for the will is the essence of
personality " I came down from heaven, not to do
mine own will, but the will of him that sent me." But John vi. ss.

18 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. III.

the tenets of Noetus and Sabellius, who denied this
truth, are so rarely affirmed by Unitarians, that with
this brief notice I may at once proceed to bring Scrip
tural testimony of all Divine attributes being predi
cated of the Son.

For is the Father Eternal? Bethlehem was the
predicted birthplace into our world, of One, " whose

wicah v. 2. goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." l!
The Word who was made flesh and dwelt among us

joim i. 2, M. "was in the beginning with God : " and himself as-

joimviii. 58. sumes the incommunicable co-eternal Name, I AM.
And he, who appeared in vision to John in Patmos,
like unto the Son of man, declares, " I am Alpha and
Omega, the beginning and the ending, which is, and
which was, and which is to come, I am the first and

Rev. i. s, 11, n, the last. lam he that liveth, and was dead; and.

cr! eh. ii. s. behold, I am alive for evermore."

Compare these words, " I am the first and the last,"
which are here beyond contradiction littered by the
Son of man, with Isai. xliv. 6, or xlviii. 12, where the
same words are confessedly used by the One Supreme
God of himself, and you have, in the language of
D wight, "the strongest assertion that eternity past
and to come belongs to the Son."

Is the Father Omnipresent ? Jesus says, " Where
two or three are gathered together in my name, there

Mat. xviii.20. am I in the midst of them." " There I am, not there

d On this passage from Micah Chrysostom observes, when con
tending with those who would be the first to detect any strained
interpretation of their own Scriptures QVTOQ ica&lt; rrjv Qior^ra
KOI rt}v avGpuiTroTTjTa SeiKvvm rip fiiv yap t nrtlv, ai i ^oSot avrov
air apxw & t lptpwv aiwrof, THN IIPOAIQNION EAHAQ2EN
Y1TAP3IN, K. T. A. Chrysost. Contr. Jud. Op. (edit. Bened.) i. 561.
The prophet here proves both the Godhead and the manhood of
Christ ; for in that he says, "his goings forth are from the begin
ning, from the days of eternity," he plainly declares his existence
before all worlds, &c.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 19

CHAI-. 1IL

I will be, referring to his Divine presence at all times.

Two or three of his people (says Scott) may be thus

met together in ten thousand places all over the earth

at the same time : this must therefore be allowed to be

a direct assertion of his omnipresent Deity. Again,

" Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the

world." Is not this a positive declaration that he is Mat. xsvui. 20

with the apostles and succeeding ministers always

unto the end of the world. But who can be so in all

the separate and distinct regions in which they

preached and do preach, except that Divine Being

who filleth all things, that Divine Essence which

occupies all space, that God who is a Spirit."

Is the Father Immutable 9 " Jesus Christ is the Hcb. xui. s.
same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever ;" and, " Unto
the Son he saith, Thou, Lord, art Heb. i. \ i,

12.

the same, and thy years shall not fail."

/N the Father Almighty ? Creation demands om-

* Sellon s Treatise on the Deity of Christ, p. 22. The Uni
tarian suggestion that tlie end of the world signifies the end of the:
Jewish age, while it does not disprove the above argument, (for
such unfailing presence of a mere man with his apostles in their
wide-spread evangelistic labours was as impossible for forty years
as for eighteen centuries.) is negatived by the only other instances
of S. Matthew s use of this phrase &gt;/ awr t\tia TOV alwvoc, ch. xiii.
39, 40, 49, where it plainly indicates the final day of judgment ;
and ch. xxiv. 3, where a careful consideration of the two-fold ques
tion of the disciples, founded on the two-fold declaration ch. xxiii.
38, 39, and of the two-fold answer it receives, proves that the
end of the world respects the second advent of Christ in glory.
The further suggestion that the promise, " Lo, I am with you
alway," was fulfilled to S. Paul and others by the invisible bodily
presence of Christ is refuted by S. Peter, who says of him,
"Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution
of all things," Acts iii. 21, and by Christ Himself, who says,
"And now I am no more in the world," John xvii. 11. See
Dwight on this passage.

20 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. III.

John i. 3. nipotence "All things were made by him." The
sustentation of all things demands omnipotence

coi. i. n. " By him all things consist." Universal government
demands omnipotence "All power is given unto

Mat. xxviii. is. him in heaven and earth." Co-extensive operation
with God the Father in a boundless empire demands
omnipotence ; and Jesus Christ, when explaining his
words, My Father worketh hitherto and I work, de
clares, " What things soever He (the Father) doeth,

johcv. 17 19. these also doeth the Son likewise." And a careful
comparison of Rev. i. 8, with ver. 13, 17, ch. ii. 8, xxii.
13, need, as it seems to me, leave no doubt upon our
minds that the Son of man declares of himself, " I am
the Almighty."

Is the Father himself incomprehensible, while com
prehending all things ? S. Peter said to our Lord
absolutely, without qualification, and with reference to
that prerogative of omniscience, heart-knowledge,

John ai. 17. "Lord, Thou knowest all things." And Christ Jesus
says of himself, " No man knoAveth the Son but the
Father ; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the

Mat.xi.27. Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him."
In this passage both the omniscience and incompre
hensibility of Christ are declared by himself. He who
knows the Father is omniscient ; he who is known

Dwipiit,_ only by the Father is incomprehensible. Also, he

johnx. is. says, " As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the

Ephe. ui. 8, is. Father." The riches of Christ are declared to be un
searchable. His love passeth knowledge. And, " In him

coi. is. s. are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge."
Is the Father infinitely good and holy, so that

Mat.xix. 17. " there is none good but one, that is, God," and again,

isam.ii. 2. "there is none holy, as Jehovah?" Jesus says, "I
am the good Shepherd." And he is called, " The

Acts iu. i*, etc. Holy One and the Just the one who knew no sin

THE ROCK OF AGES. 21

CHAP. II f.

without sin, without spot holy, harmless, undefiled Heb. vu. ze.
Jesus Christ the righteous, in whom is no sin full

n j j ,1 UoUn ii. 1, etc.

oi grace and truth.

Is the Father the Creator, Preserver, and Governor
of all things in heaven and earth ? Jesus is the Cre
ator, for " by him (the Son of his love) were all things
created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth,
visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or
dominions, or principalities, or powers : all things Coi. i. ie.
were created by him and for him." And " without him
(the Word) was not even one thing made that hath J &lt;*n \. s.
been made." Jesus Christ is the Preserver : for, " he
(the Son) upholds all things by the word of his power. Heb. i. s.
In him was life ; and the life was the light of men John i. 4.
and because I live (he says), ye shall live also." Jesus johnxiv. 19.
is the supreme Governor : for " unto the Son he saith,
Thy throne, God, is for ever and ever. He is over Heb. i. s.
all, God blessed for ever. He is King of kings, and Rom. L\. s.
Lord of lords. And his dominion is an everlasting RCV. xu. 10.
dominion which shall not pass away, and his kingdom
that which shall not be destroyed." Empire aitL

Is the Father the Searcher of hearts ? " These
things saith the Son of God, .... all the churches
shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and
hearts ; " and " He (writes S. John) knew all men, and Rev. a. is-y,.
needed not that any should testify of man: for he Johu U&gt; * 2:&gt;
knew what was in man."

Is the Father the Most High Judge of all ? Jesus
Christ likewise stands forth as the appointed Judge of
all men. For it is written, "~VVe must all appear
before the judgment seat of Christ." And "when the 2 cor. v. 10.
Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy
angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of
his glory : and before him shall be gathered all nations :
and he shall separate them one from another." Mat - xxv - S1 &gt;

32*

22 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. III.

Here then we have all f the essential attributes of
Godhead ascribed to Christ ; and this, not in one or
two obscure passages, but by a general consensus of
those holy men who spoke as they were moved by the
Holy Ghost. Many other proof texts of similar cha
racter, if space permitted, might be brought for
ward. But these suffice. What do you, who are
seeking the Lord, learn from them of your relation
to Jesus Christ ? He stands forth before you, who
jobviii. 9. are but of yesterday, as himself from everlasting:
before you, whose life is a vapour, as having life in
himself : before you, who are tied to a narrow spot of
earth, as Omnipresent : before you, a mutable man,
as unchangeably the same : before you, who without
John x\-. s. him can do nothing, as Almighty : before you, who
t cor. in. s. are not sufficient to think anything of yourself, as the
Omniscient One in whom are hid all the treasures of
wisdom and knowledge : before you, frail and defect
ive, as the Holy and the Just One without sin : before
you, a creature of the dust, as your Creator : before
you, whose goodliness is as the flower of the field, as
your Preserver : and before you, who confess your
feebleness in self-government, your short-sightedness
in self-knowledge, and your reliance on a court of
iinal appeal, as the Ruler of all things, the Searcher

Perhaps there is one adjective applied in Scripture to the
Father, aiid not to the Son, I mean "Invisible." If this be so, the
reason is manifest from the character he sustains as the medium of
communication betwixt the Creator and the creatures of his hand,
" the Image of the Invisible God." We have proved that he is in his
Divine nature omnipresent and incomprehensible. That now we
see him not, 1 Pet. i. 8, although always with us, is matter of fact.
But a careful consideration of Heb. xi. 27, "he endured as seeing
him that is invisible," leads me to question whether the direct re
ference there is not to the Word, the Angel of God s presence,
first seen by Moses at the burning bush, and still visible to the
eye of faith when he braved the wrath of the king.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 23

CHAP. III.
of all hearts, and the Judge of all men. Can it be,

that, in the presence of such infinite goodness and
glory, no feelings of adoration arise in your heart ?
It is not, that he is at an immeasurable distance from
you, so that what he is and what you are, have no
intimate connexion. But he made you, sustains you,
watches you. The offices he fills towards you are those
of God. And he is so unutterably good and gracious.
What remains? If you believe this testimony, you
must confide in him, you must love him, you must adore
him. No other feelings than those of entire reliance
and supreme love would at all answer the claims of such
a one upon you. And they are the Scriptures of truth
which, by portraying so gracious a Lord, have elicited
that confidence and warranted that affection,

But this is not all. Thus far we might argue with
uiifullen beings, and thus might urge those holy intel
ligences who left not their first estate, to obey the
Divine command, " Let all the angels of God worship Heb. i o.
him." Let us remember our position before God,
fallen, guilty, strengthless, and, as reasonable beings,
inquiring- with the deepest anxiety, "What must I do
to be saved ? " Now it is not too much to say that
the hopes of all mankind with regard to salvation,
from the wreck of Paradise lost to the prophetic vision
of Paradise restored, are fixed on this mysterious Son
of man. On him, as the seed of the woman who
should bruise the head of the serpent : as the Lord Gen. m. is.
whose future advent cheered the saintly Enoch : as jude it.
the living Redeemer on whom the patriarch Job
rested his hopes of immortality : as the son of Abra- job *. 23.
ham, a benefactor-, in whom all the families of the Gen . xxii. is.
earth should be blessed: as the Shiloh of Jacob s dy- Gen.xifc.in.
ing bed : as the Angel of the burning bush and of the E xi. in. 2;
fiery pillar : as the Captain who fought for Israel and mul si.

24 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. III.

nerved the arm of her warriors : as the begotten Son
Psai. ii. 7, and of God, the assessor of his throne, the Priest for ever,
predicted by the sweet psalmist of Israel : as the
isai. vu.u; virgin-born Emmanuel, foretold by Isaiah, the Child
endowed with a name of lustrous Deity, Wonderful,
Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Father of eternity,
the Prince of peace : as the Lord our righteousness,
anticipated by Jeremiah : as the appearance of a man
on the sapphire throne, seen in vision by Ezekiel : as
the Messiah announced to Daniel who should be cut
Dan. is. 24, 26. off but not for himself, and should bring in everlast
ing righteousness : as the Desire of all nations, of
Hag. ii. 7. whom Haggai wrote : and as the Sun of righteousness,
seen from afar by Malachi, who should rise on the
Mai. iv. 2. benighted world with healing in his wings : on him,
from age to age, the faith of every believer was fast
ened, by promise and by prophecy.

Let me, ere I pass on, select two passages from the
Old Testament for your careful consideration. That
same Psalm which proclaims the Divine decree
" Jehovah hath said unto me, Thou art my Son ; this
Psaim a. 7. day have I begotten thee," closes thus " Kiss the
Son, lest he be angry and ye perish from the way,
when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are
all they that put their trust in him." Remember the
solemn denunciation, " Cursed be the man that trust-
jer. xvii. 5. eth in man, and maketh flesh his arm." Is there not
food here for the most thoughtful inquiry ? How can
you reconcile these texts ? I venture to assert, only
in the gospel of the Son of God.

Again, if you turn to the fifty-third chapter of
Isaiah, you find, "All we like sheep have gone astray ;
isai. uii. c. we have turned every one to his own way." Compre
hensive words ! embracing the transgressions of six
thousand years. If the sins of those many generations

THE ROCK OF AGES. 25

CHAP. HI.

were gathered together, how vast the accumulation,

how insufferable the load of guilt ! It is done : for

Scripture continues, " The Lord hath laid on (hath

made to meet on) him the iniquity of us all." On isai. ini. 6.

him : on whom ? On the chosen Servant of God in

whom his soul deliffhteth, but whose visage is marred Isai - "Hi. i ;

lii. II;

more than any man ; on one who grows up as a tender
plant, who is despised and rejected of men, a man of Isai - liu - -&gt; 3 -
sorrows and acquainted with grief. On him, the sins
of all were laid. He was wounded for our transgres
sions. He was bruised for our iniquities. 8 But can
he sustain the load? Remember how earnest and
awakened men would hold their breath in. suspense, to
catch an answer on which an immortality of weal or
woe depended. Can he endure the burden ? He can :
he dies in the endurance. His soul is made an offer
ing for sin. But death is swallowed up in victory.
He lives. He sees his seed. The pleasure of the Lord
prospers in his hand. He sees of the travail of his
soul, and is satisfied our Redeemer, our Mediator, isai. xxv. *.
our Advocate. I beseech you, my friends, to weigh
that chapter on your knees. See you not, how the
confidence of all mankind centres and clusters around
that spontaneous victim, that dying man, that tri
umphant Saviour ? The Lord grant that this same

Nay more It is, not only that he was (ver. 3) acquainted with
grief, but (ver. 10) the Lord hath put him to grief: not only (ver.
5) he was bruised for our iniquities, but (ver. 10) it pleased the
Lord to bruise him -. not only (ver. 12) he bare the sin of many,
but (ver. 6) the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all : not
only (ver. 7) he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, but (ver.
10) thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. If Jesus were only
a spotless, sinless man, offering no vicarious atonement, how was
it that a holy and just God we will not say permitted such suf
ferings to light upon a perfectly innocent being but himself
caused him to suffer.

26 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. lit.

Scripture wliicli was the message of life to the eunuch
Actsviii. 32- of Ethiopia, may lead you to believe with all your
heart in the Divinity of the Son of God.

But now let us follow the course of history. At
length the fulness of the time was come, and God sent
Gai. iv. i. forth his Son. Are not the eyes of all designedly
pointed to him ? Angels from heaven announce the
Luke ii. 3-20. glad tidings, Unto you is born a Saviour: simple
Matt. ii. 11. shepherds salute him ; and eastern wise men worship
hi in. He grows up, as foretold, a despised Nazarene.
But, at his baptism, the heavens are opened, the Spirit
of God descends like a dove upon him, and the voice
of the Eternal Father proclaims, " This is my beloved
Matt. in. 17. Sou, in whom I am well pleased." Soon the devil
Matt. iv. i. assaults him, and angels minister to him, their Lord.
His herald points him out, " Behold the Lamb of God,
joimi.2 .i. which taketh away the sin of the world." He speaks
joim vii. in. as man never spoke. He works wonders of goodness
joim xv. i. and of grace, such as man never wrought. He intro
duces a morality of unequalled simplicity and purity
and worth. He preaches the glad tidings of the king
dom of heaven. But his own received him not. He
is betrayed, condemned, and crucified. He dies, the
i Pet. in. is. Just for the unjust. He lays down his life. He has
John x. is. power to take it again. He rises. He ascends to the
Psa. hviii. is. right hand of God. There he receives gifts for men.
Actsv. :n. He sheds forth his Spirit. He gives repentance and
Heb. \ii. 2.-,. remission of sins. He ever lives to make intercession
for us. He is preparing a place in glory for his chil
dren : and thence he shall shortly come again and take
John xiv. 13. us unto himself, that where he is there we may be also
Who, I ask, can believe this simple story of redeem
ing grace, and not repose their whole confidence in
this Saviour ? Who can refrain from trusting him
with supreme reliance ? Who can forbear loving him

THE ROCK OF AGES. 27

CHAI-. III.

with the most absorbing love ? If Scripture forbade
these emotions, as being due only to the infinite Fa
ther, what force we must lay upon ourselves to prevent
them springing up in the trustful heart ! But does
Scripture forbid them ? nay, verily. Prophecy, as
we have seen, foretold that thus it should be, and
blessed the confidence. And when the Saviour walked
our fallen world, suppliant sinners worship him, and
he refuses it not. They put their whole trust in him,
and he declares it not only suitable but essential. John i x . :;;&gt;
Upon it hangs eternity. " God so loved the world,
that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever be-
lieveth in him should not perish, but have everlasting
life." But is this trust altogether identical with that joimiu. ID.
we are required to repose in the Father ? It is one
and the same. He says, " Believe in God : believe
also in me." His invitations penetrate the weary johnxiv. i.
heart : " Come unto me, all ye that labour and are
heavy laden, and I will give you rest : " and his Matt. xi. :*.
words fall like dew 011 the parched and thirsty soul :
"If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink."
He insists that " all men should honour the Son, even
as they honour the Father." He concentrates the af- Joimv. .-;.
fection and the affiance of his people upon himself as
the one Mediator. He invites us to offer up our Matt. xi. &gt;:.
prayers in his prevalent name. And finally, he John xvi. 2.-;,
assures us, " He gives eternal life " unto his own John x. &gt;*.
disciples, and " will raise them up at the last day." Joimvi. m.

And after his ascension to glory, what is the con
duct and the testimony of his chosen apostles ? In.
the name of Jesus Christ they do all their mighty
works. For Jesus Christ s sake they suffer the loss of
all tilings. They uniformly preach Jesus Christ ; and
the Holy Spirit seals their message. They know no
thing among men, but Jesus Christ and him crucified, i cor.

28 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. III.

Yea, I should have to transcribe a great portion of the
Epistles if I wanted to transfer to these pages all the
evidence those letters afford, that Scripture requires us
to repose our supreme reliance on the Lord Jesus
Christ. The most casual glance might make us
suspect, that a name which meets our eye every few
lines was none other than that of the Divine Saviour
of the world. Why else its perpetual recurrence ?
A deeper search only confirms this. Take for instance
the first few verses of the Epistle to the Ephesians :

" Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the
saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus :
Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from
the Lord Jesus Christ.

" Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly
places in Christ :

" According as He ha-th chosen us in him before the found
ation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame
before him in love :

" Having predestinated us according to the adoption of
children, according to the good pleasure of his will,

" To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath
made us accepted in the Beloved :

" In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the
forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace."

The privileges are surpassingly great ; but mark how
they are all ours IN CHRIST. It is " an apostle of
Jesus Christ " who writes. The church is described as
the faithful "in Christ Jesus." The benediction is
given from God our Father, and co-ordinately " from
the Lord Jesus Christ." God is praised : it is as
"the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." All
spiritual blessings are ours : they are ours "in Christ."
"We are chosen : it is " in Him." "We are predesti
nated unto the adoption of children : it is " by Jesus

THE ROCK OF AGES. 29

CHAP. 1IJ.

Christ." We are accepted: it is "in the Beloved."
We have redemption, even the forgiveness of sins : it
is " in him through his blood." We are indebted to
Christ for all. We are compelled to look up unto
him, and say " Lord, my trust is in thee."

The force of this reasoning will appear more strongly,
if you attempt to substitute here for the name of Jesus
that of any man, however exalted and self-devoted, or
of any creature, however lofty in the scale of creation.
Make the trial. Read the passage given above, sub
stituting the name of Michael the archangel, or of
Moses the legal mediator, or of Stephen who sealed
his witness with his blood, for that only " name under
heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." Acts iv. 12.
You cannot do it. You stop short. It is an intoler
able discord. It is blasphemy. For you feel this
would be reposing in the creature an exhaustive con
fidence due only to the Infinite Creator, and offering
to man a supreme gratitude which is the prerogative
of God our Saviour.

Such passages might be easily multiplied. I would
mention the first chapters of the Epistle to the Colos-
sians, of S. Peter s first Epistle, of S. John s first
Epistle : I study all, and in all I find Jesus my
Saviour. Do you admit the cry of the awakened con
science is " What must I do to be saved ? " You
must acknowledge that the reply of the New Testa
ment from end to end, from the angel s message to
Joseph, " Thou shalt call his name Jesus : for he shall
save his people from their sins," to the ascription of Na- 1. zi.
praise recorded by the aged John in Patmos, " Unto
him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his
own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto
God and his Father " the reply, I say, is plain and
unhesitating, " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and

30 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. III.

ctsxvi. si. thou shalt be saved." It is not only that one of il
limitable goodness and infinite perfections, your Cre
ator and Preserver, stands before you, a man of limited
and finite capacities : but he presents himself to you
fallen, and guilty, and lost, as one who is able and
willing to raise you from the lowest depths of sin and
make you members of a royal priesthood, and cause
you to reign with him among the sons of light for
ever and for ever. No utterance but one like Mary s
satisfies his claims : " My spirit hath rejoiced in God

ufcci.47. my Saviour." The Lord grant unto you and me like
precious faith, that resting on these exceeding great

ivt. i. 1,4, and precious promises, an entrance may be ministered
unto us into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ !

CHAPTER IV.

CHAP. iv. THE preceding truths will have prepared the way for
my third proposition :

That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament
alike, proves the co-equal Deity of Jesiis Christ with
that of the Eternal Father :

by a comparison of the attributes, the majesty, and

the claims of the Father and the Son ;
by the appearances of God to the Old Testament

saints ;

by the direct and Divine worship paid to Christ ;
by the conjunction of the Father and the Son in

Divine offices ;

by explicit assertions that Christ is Jehovah and God.
And here I would ask your further honest application
of that great principle of heavenly scholarship, "the

THE ROCK OF AGES. 31

CHIP. IV.

comparing spiritual things with spiritual." For just
as in algebra, from the combination of two known
quantities the unknown is found out ; as in trigonome
try, if out of the six parts of a triangle any three, one
being a side, are given, the others are discoverable,
from which simple law have resulted all the triumphs
of astronomy ; so, in searching the Scriptures, those
humble students, who prayerfully compare and com
bine them, shall know " the things that are freely
given to us of God." l ^

(1.) I would first then place side by side the witness
of Scripture to the attributes, the majesty, and the
claims of the Father and the Son. Only a selection
from the abundant materials could of course be made.
I have exercised a rigid caution in the verses adduced
in testimony of Christ, setting many aside which I
fully believe bear witness of him. But, if after candid
investigation you think one, or more than one, inap
plicable ti the Messiah, I pray yon draw your pencil
through Iliose, which may seem to you even ambiguous.
Sufficient, and more than sufficient, will, I am per
suaded, remain uncancelled. Some marked with an
asterisi are discussed or illustrated in other portions
of this treatise, and will be easily found by a reference
to the Scripture Index at the close. In some of the
passages in the left hand column, I believe the primary
reference to be not to the Father but to the Son ; but
tnis docs not invalidate the testimony to be derived
from them, as in every case the witness is said to be
rf God, or of the Lord Jehovah ; and no one, who de
nied the Deity of Christ, could maintain, that a single
passage there adduced designates the Messiah, without
contradicting himself. I earnestly ask your calm,
dispassionate collation of these passages : and I pray
you, whilst you proceed, to suffer the full weight of

THE ROCK OF AGES.

CRAP. IV.

ai. xiii.8.

these solemn words to rest upon your mind and
memory, " I am Jehovah that is my name : and my
glory will I not give to another."

Scripture Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

From everlasting to everlasting, thou

art God. Psalm xc. 2.
Thy throne is established of old : thou

art from everlasting. -Psalm xciii.

2.
I am the first, and I am the last ; and

besides me there is no God.

Isai. xliv. 6.

2.
Do not I fill heaven and earth ? saith

the Lord. Jer. xxiii. 24.

The Lord, he it is that doth go before
thee He will be with thee; he
will not fail thee. Deut. xxxi. 8.

1 am Jehovah, I change not. Mai-
achi iii. 6.

I am the Almighty God. Gen. xvii. 1.
Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

Whose goings forth have been from of
old, from everlasting. Mic. v. 2.

Unto the Son he saith, Thy throne,
God, is for ever and ever.
Heb. i. 8.

I am the first and the last : I am he
that liveth and was dead. Rev. i.
17, 18.

He that descended is the same also that
ascended up far above all heavens,
that he might fill all things. 11
Eph. iv. 10.

*Lo, I am with you alwa7, even un
to the end of the world. Matt.
xxviii. 20.

Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, to
day, and for ever. Heb. liii. 8.
4.

*I am .... the Almighty. B. i. S.

Whatsoever things he doeth, these

b It has been objected that " the filling all things," in Ephesians ir. 10,
refers not to the occupation of space, but to preeminence of dignity. But wt
must interpret the words of Jeremiah by the true definition of omnipresence,
namely, not that God is present in everything, but that all things are present
to God, and this God present everywhere : as in Newton s well-known words
respecting the Deity. " Aeteruus est et infinitus, omnipotens et omnisciens ; id
est, durat ab aeterno in aeternum, et adest ab infinito ad infinitum. Non est
aeternitas et infinitas, sed aeternus et infinitus ; non est duratio et spatium,
sed durat et adest, durat semper et adest ubique." Bearing this in mind, 1
see no meaning to be attached to the words of the prophet regarding Jehovah,
which you must not also attach to the words of the apostle regarding Christ.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Scripture Testimony to God the FatJier,
or to God absolutely.

he in heaven and in earth.

Psalm cxxxv. 6.
5.
Canst thou by searching find out God?

Job xi. 7.
As the Father knoweth inc. John x.

15.

the depth of the riches both of the

wisdom and knowledge of God !

his ways past finding out (uveK-

iXviaaToi, trackless).-.KoM. xi. 33.

Thy footsteps (ra I^VT] aov LXX.)

are not known. Psalm Ixxvii. 19.

1 am Jehovah thy God, the Holy One

(6 u yioe //A A .) of Israel. Isai.

xliii. 3.
A God of truth and without iniquity.

Dent, xxxii. 4.

7.
Iu the beginning God created the

heavens and the earth. Gen. i. 1.

I am Jehovah, that maketh all things ;
that stretcheth forth the heavens
alone ; that spreadeth abroad the
earth by myself. Isai. xliv. 21.

The Lord hath made all things for
himself. Prov. xvi. -1.

Thou preservest them all. Neh. ix. 6.
In him we live. Acts xvii. 28.

The King of kings, and Lord of lords.
1 Tim. vi. 15.

Thy kingdom is an everlasting king
dom, and thy dominion endureth
throughout all generations.-P&z.
cxlv. 13.

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

also doeth the Son likewise.

John v. 19.

5.
No man knoweth the Son, but the

Father. Matt. xi. 27.
Even so know I the Father.-/o/5 x. 15.

The unsearchable (a

of Christ. Eph. iii. 8.

The love of Christ, which pusseth
knowledge. Eph. iii. 1!).
G.

Ye denied the Holy One (TOV Hyiov}
and the Just. Acts iii. 11.

I am . . . the Truth. John. xiv. (i.

Without sin. Ileb. i\. 15.
7.

In the beginning was the Word. All
things were made by him. John
i. 1,~3.

By him were all things created, that
are in heaven, and that are inearth,
visible and invisible, whether
they be thrones, or dominions, or
principalities, or powers :

All things were created by him, and
for him. Col. i. 1G.
8.

By him all things consist. Col. i. 1 7.

Because I live, ye shall live also.
John xiv. 19.
9.

King of kings, and Lord of lords.
Rev. xix. 16.

His dominion is an everlasting domin
ion .... and his kingdom that
which shall not be destroyed.
Dan. vii. 14.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Scripture Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

10.

Thou, even thou only, knowest the
hearts of all the children of men.
1 Kinffs viii. 39.

11.

Shall not the Judge of all the earth do

right ? Gen. xviii. 25.

12.
His kingdom ruleth over all. Psalm

ciii. 19.
The Lord shall be king over all the

earth : in that day there shall be

one Lord, and his name one.

Zecli. xiv. 9.
Thou, whose name alone is Jehovah,

art the most high over all the

earth. Psalm Ixxxiii. 18.

Upon the wicked he shall rain snares,
fire and brimstone, and an hor
rible tempest. Psalm xi. 6.

Vengeance is mine ; I will repay, saith
the Lord. Rom. xii. 19.

The day of wrath and revelation of the
righteous judgment of God.
Rom. ii. 5.

14..

Behold, the Lord God will come with
strong hand His reward is with
him. Isai. xl. 10.

Thou renderest to every man accord
ing to his work. Psalm Ixii. 12.

15.

To whom then will ye liken God?
Isai. xl. 18.

Thee the only true God (rbv povov d\ri-

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

10.

All the churches shall know that I am
he which searcheth the reins and
hearts. Rev. ii. 23.

11.

We must all appear before the judg
ment seat of Christ. 2 Cor. v. 10.

12.
He is Lord of all. Acts x. 36.

*To us there is but one Lord Jesus
Christ, by whom are all things,
and we by him. 1 Cor. viii. 6.

God hath given him a name which is

above every name. Phil. ii. 9.
That in all things he might have the

pre-eminence. Col. i. 18.

13.
The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from

heaven with his mighty angels,

in flaming fire,
Taking vengeance on them that know

not God. 2 Thess. i. 7, 8.
And from the wrath of the Lamb : for

the great day of his wrath is come ;

and who shall be able to stand ?

Rev. vi. 16, 17.

14.

Behold, I come quickly ; and my re
ward is with me,

To give every man according as his
work shall be. Rec. xxii. 12.

15.
The image of the invisible God. Col.

i. 15.
The express image of his Person.

Heb. i. 3.
* .... His Son Jesus Christ. This

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Scripture Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

Qivbv Qtov), [and Jesus Christ,
whom thou hast sent.] John
xvii. 3.

16.
The Lord thy God : to him shalt

thou cleave. Dent, x. 20.
From me is thy fruit found. ttosea

xiv. 8.

17.

Strengthen thou me according unto
thy word. Psalm cxix. 23.

18.
Lord, .... my hope is in thee.

Psalm xxxix. 7.
Blessed is the man that tnistcth in the

Lord, and whose hope the Lord

is. Jer. xvii. 7-

19.

He shall cover thee with his feathers,
and under his wings shalt thou
trust. Psa. xci. 4.

I, even I, am Jehovah ; aud beside me

there is no Saviour.
beside me no Saviour

beside me no Saviour

Scripture Testimony to Chdst.

(person) is the true God (ovrdc
tffTiv 6 aXijdtvbs 0eoe) aud eternal
life. 1 John v. 20.

16.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the
branch cannot bear fruit of itself,
except it abide in the vine ; no
more can ye, except ye abide in
me, .... for without me ye can
do nothing. John xv. -I, 5.

17.

I can do all things through Christ which
strengtheneth me. Phil. iv. 13.

18.

Jesus Christ, which is our hope. 1
Tim. i. 1.

Blessed are all they that put their
trust in Him. Psalm ii. 12.

Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Col. i. 27.

19.

How often would I have gathered thy
children together, even as a hen
gathercth her chickens under her
wings. Matt, xxiii. :&gt;7.

20.

Jesus : for he shall save his people
from their sins. Natt. i. 21.

Christ Jesus came into the world to
save sinners. 1 Tim. i. 15.

We believe that through the grace of
the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be
saved. Acts xv. 11.

He became the Author of eternal sal
vation unto all them that obey
him. Heb. v. 9.

He is able to save them to the utter
most that come unto God by Him.
Heb. vii. 25.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Scripture Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

beside me no Saviour
beside me no Saviour

beside me no Saviour.

Isai. xliii. 11.

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

Jesus, which delivered us from the
wrath to come. 1 T/iess. i. 10.

Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
2 Pet. iii. 18.

Neither is there salvation in any other :
for there is none other name under
heaven given among men, whereby
we must be saved. Acts iv. 12.
21.

*0ur great God and Saviour Jesus
Christ;

Who gave himself for us,

That He might redeem us from all
iniquity (iva \vTpuiffrjTai ;/*a aVo
aj/ojuiaf) Tides ii. 13, 14.

21.
All flesh shall know that I the Lord am

thy Saviour,
And thy Redeemer,
The mighty one of Jacob.

Isai. xlix. 26.
Let Israel hope in Jehovah . . . and

he shall redeem Israel from all his

iniquities (&lt;cai avroQ Aurpaicrtrai

rbv loparjX tic TtaaCiv TIJJV avofjUiSv

avrov. XJQ .) Psalm cxxx. 7, 8.

CHAP. iv. As examples of the free and unrestricted way in
which the word * Saviour is applied indiscriminately
to the Father and to the Son, I would draw your at
tention more closely to the context of this and of two
other passages in the Epistle to Titus.
1. ... according to the commandment of God our
Saviour (TOV &lt;rcor?/pos rjfj.u&gt;v 0eo{&gt;) . . . grace, mercy,
and peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ our Saviour (Xpioroi; TOV crwrr/pos T/pxoz;).
Titus i. 3, 4.

2 adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour (TOV

crom /pos ij[j.&gt;v eoS) in all things : for the saving (?/
&lt;ro&gt;Ti7ptos) grace of God hath appeared to all men
teaching us ... that we should live . . . looking
for the glorious appearing of our Great God and
Saviour Jesus Christ (crcor^pos ?;p.&lt;3i; Irjcrou XpioroS).
Tit. ii. 1013.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

3. .... The kindness and love towards men of God CHAP - 1V -
our Saviour (TOV cria-njpos ^//oh- 0eou) . . . through
the renewing of the Holy Ghost . . . which he
shed . . . through Jesus Christ our Saviour ( ITJO-OU
XptoToS TOV a-corTJpo? f][j.&gt;v"). Titus iii. 4 6.
Even if you refuse to admit the simply grammatical
construction of ch. ii. 13, can you believe that the
name Saviour is again and again applied in a lower
and subordinate sense to the Son to that it bears when
applied almost in the same breath to the Father ?

Scripture Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

WitliThce is the fountain of life: iu thy
light shall we see light. Psalm
xxxvi. 9.

23.

He (Jehovah of hosts) \vill swallow up
death iu victory. Isai. xxv. 8.

I will ransom them from the power of
the grave; I will redeem them
from death : O death, I will be thy
plagues ; O grave, I will be thy
destruction. Hosea xiii. .11.

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

22.

In him (the Word) was life ; and the
life was the light of men. John
i. 4,

23.

Our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath
abolished death. 2 Tint. i. 10.

That through death he (Jesus) might
destroy him that had the power
of death, that is, the devil ; and
deliver them who through fear of
death were all their lifetime Mib-
ject to bondage. llcb. ii. II, 15.

If I were to ask you to select a passage from the
Old Testament, which should declare most unequivo
cally the supreme majesty of God, could you name a
more distinctive one than the following from Isaiah ?
Yet illustrate this by other passages of Holy AVrit,
and see how all this glory appertains likewise to the
only-begotten of the Father.

21.

There is no God else beside me ;
A just God and a Saviour :
There is none beside me.

The Word was God. John i. 1.
Jesus Christ the righteous : he is the

propitiation for our sins. 1 John

ii. 1, 2.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Scripture Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

Look unto me and be ye saved,

All the ends of the earth :

For I am God ; and there is none else.

I have sworn by myself, the word is
gone out of my mouth in right
eousness, and shall not return,

That unto me every knee shall bow,
every tongue shall swear.

Surely, shall one say, In the Lord

have I righteousness
And strength :

Even to him shall men come ;

And all that are incensed against him
shall be ashamed.

In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel

be justified,
And shall glory.

Isaiah xlv. 2125.

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh
away the sin of the world. John
i. 29.

Every one which seeth the Son, and
believeth on him, may have ever
lasting life. John vi. 40.

*We shall all stand at the judgment-
seat of Christ. For it is written,
As I live, saith the Lord, every
knee shall bow to me, and every
tongue shall confess to God.
Rom. xiv. 10, 11.

*In the name of Jesus every knee
should bow, of things in heaven,
and things in earth, and things
under the earth. Phil. ii. 10.

The Branch the Lord our righteous
ness. Jerem. xxiii. 5, C.

Without me ye can do nothing. John
xv. 5.

I will draw all men unto me. John
xii. 32.

The enemies of the cross of Christ :
whose end is destruction. Phil.
iii. 18, 19.

He was raised again for our justifica
tion. Rom. iv. 25.

God forbid that I should glory, save in
cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Gal. vi. 14.

CHAP. IV.

Or if you were to choose a passage from the New
Testament the most entirely devoted to the worship
of the Father, you could not perhaps fix upon a more
distinctive one than the Lord s prayer ; in which
Jesus Christ conceals his Personal glory, that as our
Brother he may lead us up to the throne of grace, and
ry with us, while by his Spirit he teaches us to cry,
Abba, Father. Yet illustrate this by other Scriptures,

THE ROCK OF AGES.

and there is no petition which might not be appropri- CHAP. iv.
utely addressed to the Son.

Serif tare Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

25.
Our Father which art in heaven,

Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done in earth,
As it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

Forgive us our debts, as we forgive
our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil :

For thine is the kingdom, and the
power, and the glory, for ever.
Amen. Matt. vi. 913.

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

The Sou of man which is in heaven.

John iii. 13.
That the name of our Lord Jesus

Christ may be glorilicd. 2 TAess.

i. 12.
The everlasting kingdom of our Lord

and Saviour Jesus Christ. -2 ./ &lt; .

i. 11.
Ye serve the Lord Christ. Cot. iii.

24.
Jesus Christ is gone into heaven ....

angels and authorities and powers

being made subject unto him.

] Pet. iii. 22.
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd.

Ixai. xl. 11.
Forgiving one another : even as Christ

forgave you, so also do ye. Col.

iii/13.
He leadeth them out. My sheep . . .

follow me. John x. 3, 27.
Jesus Christ, who gave himself for

our sins, that he might deliver us

from this present evil world.

Gal. i. -1.

He shall reign for ever. Ecr. xi. 15.
To Him be glory and dominion for

ever and ever. Amen. lice. i. 6.

"Without denying that there is a peculiar propriety
in the offices sustained by the Father and by the Son
respectively on our behalf, these parallel passages
prove, that we may, without any impropriety, in all
the petitions which Christ has put into o\ir lips,
honour the Son even as we honour the Father.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Serif tare Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

26.

I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy
transgressions for mine own sake.
Isai. xliii. 25.

Forgiving iniquity. Exod. xxxiv. 7-

Thou hast been .... a refuge from the
storm, a shadow from the heat.
Isai. xxv. 4.

He maketh the storm a calm, so that
the waves thereof are still. Psa.
cvii. 29

28.

I have satiated the weary soul. Jer.
xxxi. 25.

1 will pour out my Spirit upon all

flesh. Joel ii. 28.
The Lord God, and his Spirit. Isai.

xlviii. 16.
The Spirit of your Father. Mat. x. 20.

30.
This is the love of God, that we keep

his commandments. 1 John v. 3.
Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel,

and afterward receive me to glory.

Psalr.i Ixxiii. 24.

31.

If I be a Master, where is my fear ?
saiththe Lord of hosts. Mal.i. 6.
Him shalt thou serve. Deut. x. 20.

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

26.
The blood of Jesus Christ his Son

cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John

i. 7.
When he had by himself purged our

sins. Heb. i. 3.
Sou, thy sins be forgiven thee. Mark

ii. 5.

27.
A man shall be .... a covert from the

tempest, .... as the shadow of a

great rock iu a weary land.

Isai. xxxii. 2.
He arose, and rebuked the winds and

sea ; and there was a great calm.

Matt. viii. 26.

28.

Come unto me, all ye that labour, . . .
and ye shall find rest to your souls.
Matt. xi. 28, 29.

29.
I will send the Comforter unto you.

John xvi. 7.

Spirit of Christ. Rom. viii. 9.
The Spirit of his Son. Gal. iv. 6.
He hath shed forth this, which ye now

see and hear. Acts ii. 33.

30.

If ye love me, keep my command
ments. John xiv. 15.

I will receive you unto myself. John
xiv. 3.

The glory which thou gavest me I
have given them. John xvii. 22.

31.
One is your Master, even Christ.

Matt, xxiii. 8, 10.
Ye serve the Lord Christ. Col. iii. 24.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Scripture Testimony to God the Father,
or to God alsolntely.

32.

Thy Maker is thine Husband : the Lord
of hosts is his name. Isai. liv. 5.

33.

By the grace of God I am what I am.
1 Cor. xv. 10.

The grace of God that bringeth salva
tion. Titus ii. 11.

34.
The love of God is shed abroad in our

hearts. Rom. \. 5.
Alive unto God (&lt;Jvroc rf&gt; G^p).

Eoni. vi. 11.

Them that love God. Rom. viii. -V

Thy word have I hid iu mine heart.

Psalm cxix. 11.
Thou shalt say, Thus saith the Lord

God. *. ii. 4.

[as Lawgiver: see context.]

36.
Give ear, Shepherd of Israel, thou

that loadest Joseph like a flock.

Psalm Ixxx. 1.

I will feed my flock, and 1 will cause
them to lie down, saith the Lord
God. Ezek. xxxiv. 15.

The flock of God. 1 Peter v. 2.

I will seek that which was lost (rb aVo-
\a,Aof . ZAX) Ezek. xxxiv. 16.

Jehovah is my Shepherd ;
I shall not want.

Scripture Testimony to Christ.

32.

He that hath the bride is the Bride
groom. John iii. 29.
The Bride, the Lamb s wife. Tfrr.

xxi. 9.

33.
Be strong in the grace that is in Christ

Jesus. 2 Tim. ii. 1-
Through the grace of the Lord Jesus

Christ, we shall be saved. Acts

xv. 11. (quoted above.)

34.
The love of Christ const raiueth us

.... that they which live ....
Should live to him that died for them

(Zwatv r&lt;p diroQavovri). 2

14, 15.
If any man love not the Lord Jesus

Christ. 1 Cor. xvi. :?:?.

35.
Let the word of Chri&gt;i dwell in you

richly. Cut. iii. 16.
I say unto you. Jfatt. v. -22, -, \ dc.

[as Lawgiver : sec context. 1

30.
Our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd

of the sheep. // //. xiii. ~ 0.
The chief Shepherd shall appear. 1

Peter v. i.
I am the good Shepherd . . . there

shall be one flock (iroi^i t^, one

shepherd. John x. 11, \&lt;"&gt;.
My lambs, my sheep. John xxi. 15. 1C.
The Son of man is come to seek and to

save that which was lost (TO t mo-

XuAt c). Luke xix. 10.
The Shepherd .... of your souls.

1 Peter ii. 25.
My sheep shall never perish. Joint

x. 2S.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Scripture Testimony to God the Father,
or to God absolutely.

Hemakethme to lie down in green pas
tures : he leadeth me beside the
still waters. Psalm xxiii. 1, 3.

37.

Whom Jehovah loveth, he correcteth.
Prov. iii. 12.
38.

God will render to them . . . eternal
life. Rom. ii. 5, 7.

l- or he hath prepared (tyroi /ian) for
them a city. Heb. xi. 16.
39.

[For all people will walk every one in
the name of his god] and we will
walk in the name of the Lord our
God, Iv ot/o/uart Kvpiov Qtov /^wj/.
LXX. Micah iv. 5.

Let him trust in the name of the Lord,
and stay upon his God. Isai. 1.
10.

Glorify ye .... the name of the Lord
God of Israel in the isles of the
sea. Isai. xxiv. 15.

The name of the Lord is a strong tower.
Prot. xviii. 10.
40.

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my
soul shall be joyful in my God :
for he hath clothed me with the
garments of salvation. Isai. Ixi.
10.

41.

That God may be all in all (TO. ituv-a iv

xitaiv). 1 Cor. xv. 28.

42.
God and our Father : to whom be glory

for ever and ever. Amen. Gal.

i. 4, 5.

Scripture Testimony tc&gt; Christ.

The Lamb . . . shall feed them, and
shall lead them unto living foun
tains of water. Rev. vii. 17.
37.

As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten.
Rev. iii. 19.

38.

Be thou faithful unto death, and I will
give thee a crown of life. Rev.
ii. 10.

I go to prepare (tToifidaai) a place for
you. John xiv. 2.
39.

And whatsoever ye do in word or deed,
do all in the name of the Lord
Jesus (iv ovopan Kvpiov lijffot).
Col. iii. 17.

And his name through faith in his
name hath made this man strong.
Acts iii. 16.

That the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ may be glorified in you.
2 Thess. i. 12.

In his name shall the Gentiles trust.
Matt. xii. 21.

40.

Jesus Christ : whom having not seen,
ye love ; in whom, though now ye
see him not, yet believing, ye re
joice with joy unspeakable and full
of glory : receiving the end of your
faith, even the salvation of your
souls. 1 Peter i. 8, 9.
41.

Christ, all and in all (TO. Travra cat iv
vaaiv). Col. iii. 11
42.

Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
To him be glory both now and
for ever. Amen. 2 Pet. iii. 18.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 43

CHAI-. IV.

Let us ponder these passages with prayer. Here
Scripture asserts, that the Father is eternal, and the
Son eternal. Now One, who is from everlasting, must
needs be God. But there are not two Gods. There
fore the Son is one with God, and is God.

In like manner Scripture asserts that the Son,
equally with the Father, is the first and the last ; is
omnipresent, immutable, almighty ; is incomprehen
sible, absolutely holy, indefectible ; is the Creator,
Preserver, and Governor of all things in heaven and
earth ; is the Searcher of all hearts, the final Judge,
and the Awarder of everlasting life and death. Now
One, possessing such properties and fulfilling such
offices, must needs be God. But there are not two
Gods. Therefore the Son is one with God, and is God.

So, likewise, Scripture asserts, that unto the Son,
equally with the Father, his people are to cleave, in
him to abide, from him to draw their strength, and on
him to repose their hope and trust ; that the Son,
equally with the Father, is the alone Saviour and
Redeemer of mankind ; that looking up to the Son,
equally with the Father, sinners are pardoned and
souls are saved ; that unto the supereminent Father,
and equally unto the supereminent Son, every knee
shall bow ; that the Son, equally with the Father, is
the righteousness and strength and rock, the Shepherd
and the Master of his people ; forgives sins, calms the
conscience, gives his holy Spirit, legislates for his
people on earth, and will receive them to his glory ;
that the Son, equally with the Father, claims the su
preme affiance of all, and is to those, who believe in him,
the Author of unspeakable joy and everlasting salva
tion. Now One, who is the object of such ultimate
confidence, homage, and delight, must needs be God.

44 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

But there are not two Gods. Therefore the Son is one
with God, and is God.

Or, to put the same truth in another light, if you
were asked to name the most marked relations, which
Scripture represents the most high God as bearing
towards his people, you would answer instinctively
and without hesitation, those of Creator, Preserver,
Redeemer, Saviour, Lord, Shepherd, King, Judge,
and Father. And yet we read of Jesus Christ, as we
have seen in the above passages, sustaining all these
offices. Is he not our Creator, when " all things that
are in heaven and that are in earth " were created by
him ? Is he not our Preserver, when " by him all

Coi. i. 16,17. things consist?" Is he not our Redeemer, seeing
that " Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the

Gai.iii. is. law, being made a curse for us?" Are not Saviour
and Lord his distinctive names ? Is he not em-

i Pet. v. 4. phatically the Chief Shepherd (6 apxt^ot/x?^) ? Is he
not the Lamb our King, when he is Lord of lords

KM-, xvii. H. and King of kings ? Is he not our Judge, when "we

Rom.xiv. 10. shall all stand before the judgment-seat of Christ ? "
And, lastly, does he not bear the relationship of Father
to his people, when in them he sees his seed, the

isai.iiii. io, ii. travail of his soul, and is satisfied; when he calls them

John xxi. n. children ; and when he will present them at last
before the throne, saying, " Behold I and the children

Hcb. ii. is. which God hath given me ? " Just as, if you took
those passages only which refer to the Father under
these characters, you might, without further search,
have concluded that he alone, without the Son, bore
these offices of love : so, likewise, if you were to take
those Scriptures only which relate to the Son, you
might have prematurely inferred, that Jesus Christ
alone, without the Father, was the Creator, Preserver.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 45

CHAP. IV.

Redeemer, Saviour, Lord, Shepherd, King, Judge,
and Parent of his people.

These Scriptures are amply sufficient to bear the
weight of this most solemn conclusion, and I migh
with blessed expectation ask " Dost thou now believe
in the Son of God ? " But abounding and independent
evidence remains.

(2) For the appearances of Jehovah to the Old
Testament saints, taken in connexion with the asser
tion to Moses, " Thou canst not see my face : for there
shall no man see me, and live," and with the parallel Exod.xxxiii. 20,
declaration of the New Testament, " No man (or no
one, ovbfis,) hath seen God at any time ; the only-be
gotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he
hath declared him," indicate that he, who thus mani- John i. is.
fested himself, was the Lord Jesus. It is true that in
John i. 18, the assertion is general, no one ; but in 1
Tim. vi. 16, " man " is expressed (ov tlbev ovSeis avOpu-
Trojy, oL&gt;8e Ibfli bvvaTat), " whom no man hath seen,
nor can see."

Now Jacob says, " I have seen God face to face, and
my life is preserved," and this after wrestling all night Gen. xxxii. so.
long in tangible conflict with One now called a man, Hosca xis. :;, i.
now the angel, now God, now the Lord God of hosts.
The elders saw the God of Israel. Unto Moses, the Esod. \\i\. 10.
Lord spake face to face, as a man speaketh with his Exod.xxxiii.n.
friend. Joshua conversed with the adorable captain
of Jehovah s host. Manoah feared, saying 1 , " We shall Jo^s. 15,

J O cf. Kx. ill. 5.

surely die, because we have seen God." Isaiah cries, Judges xiii. 22.

" Woe is me ! for I am undone ; ... for mine eyes have

seen the King, the Lord of hosts." Of the message isai.vi.5.

then recorded, we are expressly told "These things

said Esaias, when he saw his (Christ s) glory, and

spake of him." johnxii. 11.

46 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

These are only selected passages. There are many
others (compare Genesis xviii. 1, 2, with 17 : Gen.
xxxi. 11, with 13 : Gen. xlviii. 15, with 16 : Exod.
iii. 2, with 4, 6 : Exod xiii. 21, with xiv. 19 : Judges
vi. 12, with 14, 22 with 23) in which the one who
appears under the form of an angel or a man, is, in
the immediate context, declared to be God, or Jeho
vah. Who, I ask, was this mysterious being ? the
Angel, or Sent One : he whom the Lord calls " my
Kxoii.xxxiii.u.^mojtt? : " the visible similitude of Jehovah: an
Numbers xn. s. Angel of whom the Lord says, " Beware of him, and
obey his voice, provoke him not ; for he will not par-
Kx-.il. xxiii. 20, don your transgressions : for my name is in him ? "
This one could not be distinctively the Father, for no
man hath seen him. at any time, or can see him and
live. But he who appeared is declared to be Jehovah
and God. Are we not compelled to acknowledge that
he was the Divine Word, the Son, the brightness of
his Father s glory, the express image of his person ?
Therefore the Word is Jehovah God.

(3) This is further established by the consideration
that Scripture sanctions prayer to Christ, and com
mands the highest adoration and worship to be paid
to him.

Respect being had to the argument of the preceding-
section, we may conclude that it was not distinctively
God the Father, but God the Son with whom Abra-
Gen. xviii. 23 ham interceded for Sodom and Gomorrah. It was

33.

God the Son with whom Jacob wrestled in prayer, for
we are told " he had power with God : yea, he had
HOSCU xii. ?,, 4. power over the Angel, and prevailed," when he cried,
" I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." It
was God the Son, whose benediction he besought for
his grand-children, when he prayed, " The God which

THE ROCK OF AGES. 47

CHAP. IV.

fed me all my life long, the Angel which redeemed

me from all evil, bless the lads." In all these in- ^^m. 13,
stances, there is direct prayer to Christ.

Again, it was God the Son, called the Angel of Je
hovah, whom Moses worshipped at the bush. It was
God the Son, who appeared as a man, before whom
Joshua fell on his face and worshipped. It was God Josh. v. is.

the Son whose fflorv Gideon feared, and to whom he judg. vi.st.

i -i it- T Tlie Lord soud

built the altar which records that living prayer, J eho- peace.

vah-shalom. It was God the Son, the angel of Jeho
vah, whose name was Wonderful, who rose in the
smoke of Manoah s sacrifice. It was God the Son, for j lu i- x ;ii. 17

20.

" upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as
the appearance of a man above upon it," before whom EM-L-. i. -M.
E/ekiel fell upon his face. In all these instances, we
have direct worship paid to Christ.

Further, we read expressly in the Gospels, that the
Lord Jesus was again and again worshipped, and we
never find that he refused this adoration. I cannot
consent for a moment to relinquish this word " wor
ship " on the demand of some Unitarian writers,
that it was only such reverent salutation, as was by
custom offered to those in authority. But at the same
time this demand requires that we carefully and can
didly investigate the instances of its occurrence. No
one denies that the word translated worship (Ttpoo-Kv-
re w) is often used in classical writers for humble and
prostrate salutation. But the great question remains,

Thus Dr. Channiiig writes iu reply to this argument, " It is
wonderful that this fallacy so often exposed should be still re
peated. Jesus indeed received worship or homage, but this was
not as adoration to the infinite God : it was the homage which,
according to the custom of the age, and of the Eastern world, was
paid to men invested with great authority, whether in civil or
religious concerns." Quoted by Dr. Gordon.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Cn.vr. IV.

what is its New Testament usage ? I confess I was
not prepared, when I began my search, for such prepon
derating proof of its almost universal application to
Divine homage. The word occurs sixty times, and
the noun formed from it (irpoa-Kw^T^s) once. The
references are given below. k From which we arrive at

k On the use of the word irpoaicvvew

Worship offered to God.
Matt. iv. 10, ) Thou shalt worship the
Luke iv. 8, ) Lord thy God.
John iv. 20 24, it occurs ten times
including the noun of the wor
ship of the Father.
1 Cor. xiv. 25, he will worship God.
Rev. iv. 10, ") worship him that liveth
v. 14, ) for ever and ever.

vii. 11, 7

n r ( wc
XI. 16, )

worshipped God.

xiv. 7, worship him that made
heaven.

- xv. 4, worship before thee, O
Lord.

- xix. 4, worshipped God that sat
on the throne.

xix. 10, 1 , . n -,
v worship God.
xxu. 9, J

Idolatrous worship repudiated.
worship of Satan.

Acts vii. 43, worship of figures.

- x. 25, human worship refused,
llcv. ix. 20, idolatry.

- xiii. 4 (twice),"")

xui.S 12 15, I ^ of thc

irir U I *

{.dragon, the beast
or his image.

xix. 10, &gt; saintly or angelic wor-
xxii.8,9, j ship refused.

in the New Testament :

Worship offered to Christ.
Matt. ii. 2, 8, 11, by the magi.

- viii. 2, by the leper.

ix. 18, by the ruler.

xiv. 33, by the disciples after the
storm.

xv. 25, by the woman of Tyre.

xx. 20, by Salome.

... -\ by the women and by

-. &gt; the disciples, after

xxviu. 17, \ , . ,.

J his resurrection.

Luke xxiv. 52, by the disciples as He

ascended.

John ix. 38, by the man born blind.
Heb. i. 6, by all the angels.
[These are two instances of a distinct

character :]
Mark v. 6, by the possessed.

xv. 19, worship offered in mockery.
Worship ^lsed intransitively.

John xii. 20, Greeks came up to wor
ship.
Acts viii. 27, of the eunuch.

- xxiv. 11, of S.Paul.
Heb. xi. 21, of Jacob.

Rev. xi. 1, worshippers in the temple.

xiv. 9, 11,
xvi. 2,
xix. 20,
xx. 4,

[There remain two instances in which

it is used of allowed salutation to

man :]
Matt, xviii. 26, by the unmerciful

servant.
Rev. iii. 9, I will make them to come

and worship before thy feet.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 49

CHAP. IV.

this result, that there are twenty-two instances in
which it is used of worship offered to God the Father,
or absolutely to God ; and five of Divine worship used
intransitively ; fifteen instances (including two except
ional cases) of worship to Jesus Christ ; seventeen of
idolatrous worship condemned, and two only of al
lowed salutation to man. Of these last two, moreover,
in one, (Matt, xviii. 26,) the king to whom the worship
is paid is in his royalty a type of God ; and immedi
ately after, when the story represents a like transaction
between fellow-men, the word worshipped is ex- Matt, xviii. &gt;.
changed for bcsouyht. We are, therefore, virtually
reduced to one solitary instance ; and taking the New
Testament for our guide, it would be as unnatural to
deny, that Divine worship is paid to Christ, as it would
be just to accuse us of offering only human salutation
to God, when we profess to icorship him in his house,
because we have lately addressed one of our civic
magistrates as "the u-nrx/t /&gt;/ "/ the mayor."

But the proportion of instances only presents a part
of the evidence. When this same homage, described
by the same word (-porr/a&gt;rao) was offered to a man or
angel, where it could possibly be misunderstood, as Actsx. 25, :&gt;;.
by Cornelius to Peter, or by John to his prophetic Rev. xi*. 10 ,
guide, the action was immediately rebuked, and the
worship straightway diverted from the creature to the
Creator.

Nor is this all : it is not only, that Jesus was wor
shipped, but the affections and petitions, which accom
panied that worship, manifest, if not always distinct
recognition of his true Godhead, at least, such humble
dependence on his aid, as Divine aid, that if he were
not God, he must needs have rectified so dangerous an
approximation to idolatry. The leper not only wor
shipped him, but besought super-human assistance :

50 THE HOCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

Matt.viii. . " Lord, if thou wilt, tliou canst make me clean." The
ruler not only worshipped him, but implored his Di
vine interference : " My daughter is even now dead :
but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall

Matt. ix. is. live." l It was after he had manifested his God-like
power in quelling the storm, that the disciples wor
shipped him, saying, " Of a truth thou art the Son of

Matt. xi\-. 33. God." He demanded the implicit confidence of the

John ix. 35-38. man born blind, ere he received his worship. Natural
love found utterance in that piercing prayer, when the
woman of Tyre worshipped him, saying, " Lord, help

aiatt.sv.25. me." His resurrection power challenged, and com-

Matt. xxviii. y. polled the adoring worship of the Marys and the
apostles ; and the glory of the ascension warranted

Luke xxiv. 52. the homage they paid on Olivet.

Nor are we confined to the word, worship. What was
it but trustful prayer, when the disciples in the storm
fulfilled the Psalmist s description of tempest-tossed

r-sa.cvii.2s. mariners, who "cry unto the Lord in their trouble,"
by betaking themselves to Jesus : " Lord, save us, we

Matt. viii. 25. perish." What was it but prayer, when the two blind
men implored a blessing no human power could be-

Matt. ix. 27. stow, crying, "Thou Son of David, have mercy on us."
The reader will easily multiply examples of these sup
plications from the gospel history.

Moreover, Jesus Christ inculcated prayer to himself.
What petition could embrace a more glorious gift,
than that he would persuade the woman of Samaria
to offer ? " Thou wouldest have asked of him, and he

1 The distinction betwixt such petitions and the request to the
apostles for assistance (as Acts ix. 38) is transparent ; as Jesus in
his own right, as the Messiah of God, wrought his mighty works ;
and they, utterly repudiating self-dependence (Acts iii. 12), wrought
all in the name and by the power of Jesus Christ.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 51

CHAP. IV.

would have given thee living water, . . . springing up
into everlasting life." Again, he invites the weary John iv. 10, u.
and heavy-laden to come to him for rest. How are Matt. xi. us.
we to come, but by prayer ? So he upbraids the Jews :
"Ye will not come to me, that ye might have life." John-.-, m.
How were they to come, but by confiding prayer?
Yes, confidence in a love, reliance on a power, de
pendence on a wisdom beyond that of our fellow-men
and beyond our own this is the soul of prayer, this
is the essence of worship. But this trust he solicits
for himself. " Let not your heart be troubled : yc
believe in God, believe also in me." And so of praise. j im xi\. i.
You admit the Divine homage to the Father, of the
angelic song, " Glory to God in the highest : " You
must also admit the cucharistic tribute rendered,
though by humbler and human lips, when the multi
tudes cried, " Hosannah to the Son of David ! Blessed
is he that cometh in the name of the Lord ; Hosannah
in the highest." For, when the chief priests and Matt. xxi. :&gt;.
scribes were sore displeased, instead of rebuking this
giving of thanks, he says, " I tell you that, if these
should hold their peace, the stones would immediately mice six. i \
cry out. Have ye never read, Out of the mouth of
babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise ?" Matt xxi ,,..

Again, what was the dying act of the proto-martyr
Stephen, but the truest adoration of the Son of God ?
Realize, I pray you, that scene. Stephen, full of the Actsvii.3i-oi&gt;.
Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven and saw
the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right
hand of God, and said, " Behold, I see the heavens
opened, and the Son of man standing on the right
hand of God." Then they cried out .... and stoned
Stephen invoking," 1 and saying, " Lord Jesus, receive

10 I need not remind the reader that the word God is not in the
Greek.

D 2

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Ps.i. xxxi.

Kcclo. xii.

1 Cor. i. 2.

Psa. cxlv. IS.

my spirit." And lie kneeled down and cried with, a
loud voice, " Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. *
And when he had said this, he fell asleep. The Holy
Ghost, who had inspired David s devout affiance "In
to thine hand I commit my spirit : thou hast redeemed
me, Lord God of truth " and who had dictated Solo
mon s declaration, " The spirit shall return unto God
who gave it" now, in the plenitude of his grace,
prompted the dying martyr to pray not to God the
Father alone, nor to the Father through Christ, but
to pray to Christ, worshipping him with his latest
breath as very and eternal God.

Again, S. Paul addresses prayer to God the Father,
and to the Lord Jesus Christ, without respect to order
of names :

Now God himself and our
Tathcr, and our Lord Jesus
Christ, direct our way unto you.
1 Tlicss. iii. 11.

Now our Lord Jesus Christ
himself, and God. even our Fa
ther, .... comfort your hearts.
2 Thess. ii. 16, 17.

Here is express and direct supplication, so that we need
not marvel that this was one distinctive name of
Christian believers " all that in every place call upon
(eTriKaAoujueVois) the name of Jesus Christ our Lord."

The testimony from (e77iKaAe o/xat) here, and gener
ally translated, call upon, is most convincing, when
compared with the Septuagint usage of the word : for
it is the ordinary term for the sacred invocation of
God ; as, to take one example out of multitudes, " The
Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all
that call upon him in truth." It is employed in the New
Testament for prayer to God the Father : "If ye call
on the Father, etc." It describes such spiritual wor
ship, that, whether offered to the Father or to the Sou,
salvation is indissolubly connected with it : " Who
soever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be

THE ROCK OF AGES. 53

CHAP. IV.

saved." And yet it is, without a shadow of a doubt, Acts 11.21.
applied to the invocation of the Lord Jesus " all that
call on thy name," " them which called on this name," Acts is. 14, 21.
and, (for the context compels us to interpret the fol
lowing words of Christ,) " the same Lord over all, is
rich unto all that call upon him." Rom. x. 12.

When with an unbiassed mind you read, " Arise,
and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, after calling
on the name of the Lord," (eTri/caAecrafieros TO ovo^a TOV Acte xxii - 1".
KV/H OU,) you make no question, that Divine worship is
here intended. Or when you hear the practical com
mand, " Follow after righteousness, faith, charity,
peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure
heart," (fxera rS&gt;v ^TTiKaAoujueytoy TOV Kvpiov CK Kaflapas 2 Tim. a. 22.
KapSias,) no suspicion troubles your mind, that by these
are not meant true spiritual worshippers. Let us
recur to the above-quoted description of the saints,
" them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called saints,
with all that in every place call upon the name of
Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours." (avvicm.it.
TTCLCTL Tolf e-tKaAov/xez-ots TO orojj.a TOV Kvpiov ?//M&lt;Sf Irjcrov

XplOTOU V TTCLVTl T077W, dVTU&gt;V Te KOL f)p.U&gt;V.) Is not tills

explicit ? is not this Divine worship ? are not these
spiritual worshippers ? You must concede it. And
ALL SAINTS IN EVERY PLACE are thus worshipping Jesus
Christ. Consider this I pray you. If you are ap
pealed to by a friend in serious perplexity for counsel
and succour, you give yourself up to his necessities.
Your whole heart is engaged on his behalf. But, if
another man also in difficulty should chance to come
at the same hour, you would find it hard to disengage
your thoughts from the first case, and apply them to
the second. Now if a third suitor came for your de
liberate judgment on a decision of the last importance,
you would almost despair of keeping these varied in-

54 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CRAP. IV.

terests disentangled and asunder. Suppose, however,
ten or twenty anxious burdened suppliants were to
besiege you at once, and all together to call upon you
for immediate attention, for advice upon the spot, for
aid at the moment, baffled and bewildered, you would
retire alone, and confess that such a demand was en
tirely beyond the powers of man. Now remember

" ALL SAINTS IN EVERY PLACE ARE CALLING UPON THE

NAME or JESUS CHRIST." They are bringing before
him matters of the most stupendous magnitude ; they
they are pouring into his ear the deepest secrets of
the human heart ; they are supplicating grace for
crises of the sorest need ; they are confiding to his
care the concerns of time and eternity. And what
follows ? He hears all. He comprehends all. He
answers all. While receiving the adoration of the
hosts of glory, he gathers up into his hand the woven
tissue of the interests of his church militant here on
earth. The worshippers are ten thousand times ten
thousand and thousands of thousands. They are
numbers without number. If a single cry of distress
were disregarded, or a single note of praise unheard,
that act of homage would be vain and futile, an offer
ing to the idle air, an appeal to an incompetent Deity.
But no prayer is lost. There is no confusion, no en
tanglement, no weariness, no intermission of regard.
Himself has invited us to come, and ALL IN EVERY
PLACE WHO CALL UPON HIS NAME are daily proving
the truth of his Divine proclamation, " Come unto
me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will
watt. si. as. give you rest."

Before we pass on, let us ponder that declaration of
S. Paul, with regard to his crucified Lord "God
hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which
is above every name, that in the name of Jesus every

THE ROCK OP AGES. 55

CHAP. IV.

knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in
earth, and things under the earth ; and that every
tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the
glory of God the Father." Regard this fact as you Phu. u. -n.
will, refine it as you may, spiritualize it to the utmost,
if Jesus were man only, it would prefigure the uni
versal exaltation of a creature. The mighty suasion
of a creature s name, would bring every intelligent
being to his knees, from the highest archangel to the
feeblest saint : the name of a creature, would swell
the tide of celestial adoration, and tremble on the lips
of the contrite penitent ; and the supremacy of a crea
ture would overshadow heaven, and earth, and hell.
Could this tend to the glory of God the Father?
nay, verily. That name, which is above every name,
is Christ s, with emphatic propriety, " God, our Sa
viour."

The latest revelation of Scripture confirms this truth,
beyond contradiction. Is it Divine worship of the Fa
ther, when S. Peter, having prayed the God of all
grace to perfect, stablish, strengthen, and settle his
people, closes his solemn prayer with the equally
solemn doxology, " To him be glory and dominion,
forever and ever. Amen." You admit it, you call i Pet. v. n.
it " adoration to the infinite God." Only be consist
ent. John, in Patmos, cries, " Unto him that loved
us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and
hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Fa
ther ; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever.
Amen." The words, both in Greek and English, are KCV. \. .-,, c.
identical ; the adoration is the same ; and the Beings
worshipped the God of all grace, and the bleeding ^K^
Saviour are One indivisible Jehovah. gpeu&is.

And when the veil is drawn aside in the celestial
temple, what is, I pray you, the nature of their wor-

56 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

ship ? Spirit of the living God, engrave this trans
parent evidence on every doubting heart !

" The four living creatures and four-and-twenty elders fell
Rev. v. 8-14. down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and
golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
And they sang a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take
the book, and to open the seals thereof, for thou wast slain, and
hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every kindred, and
tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God
kings and priests : and we shall reign on the earth.

" And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round
about the throne and the living creatures and the elders, and
the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand and
thousands of thousands ; saying with a loud voice, Worthy is
the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wis
dom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.

" And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth,
and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are
in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and
.power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the
Lamb for ever and ever.

" And the four living creatures said, Amen. And the four-
and-twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth
for ever and ever."

This testimony is guarded on every side. You have
first, the redeemed adoring the Lamb only, with pros
trate adoration. Then numbers without number of
the angels adore the Lamb likewise. Then the whole
universe, in similar adoration, blesses both the eternal
Father and the Lamb. And, lastly, there is the ex
pressive echo of praise to the eternal Father alone.
You cannot say it is not the highest worship, for once
it is offered to the Eternal alone." You cannot say it

" Or if, as is the most probable reading, you omit, with Trc-
gelles, in v. 14, the words, Him that liveth for ever and ever,
the worship is addressed absolutely to the Deity. It will scarcely

THE ROCK OF AGES. 57

CHAP. IV.
is offered to the Father alone, for once the Lamb is

united with the Father. You cannot say it is offered
to the Father only through the Son, for twice it is
offered alone to the Lamb that was slain. It is the
utmost homage heaven can pay. The spirits of the
just made perfect have no higher tribute to give. The
angels of light can offer no more exhaustive ascription
of their devotion. No vision that you could have
conceived, no language that you could have employed,
could more distinctly authorize our rendering to Christ
the highest and the deepest adoration, seraphic love,
confiding trust, everlasting praise.

Is it possible that one question more lurks in any
heart, why the Father only is here spoken of on the
throne, and why the Lamb being God LS not represented
" in the seat of God ? " Do the words of the Psalmist
recur, " The Lord hath prepared his throne in. the
heavens." " God sitteth upon the throne of his holi- Psa.ciii.io;
ness." "Thou satest in the throne judging right."
Let these Scriptures have their full weight. The pos
sessor of the heavenly throne is God himself. The
occupant of that throne is the Most High. Be it
so. Then the last chapter of the Divine Revelation
supplies the last proof of the one and equal supremacy
of the Father and the Son, for there, repeated with
solemn emphasis, we twice find the seat of the Eternal
described, as THE THRONE OF GOD AND OF THE LAMB. Rev. x\u. 1 4 s.

I have dwelt the longer on this portion of my argu
ment, for this is, of itself, sufficient to set the question
at rest for ever, when we remember that Jesus Christ
himself, gathering up the testimony of Scripture, says,
" It is written, thou shalt worship (~poa-Kvin ]&lt;reis) the

be believed, that those who have refused to admit adoration as ex
pressed by (irpooKwiu} when applied to Jesus Christ, have ob
jected that here the self-same word is applied only to the Father,
i) 3

58 THE ROCK OF AGES.

C HAV. IV.

Matt. iv. 10. Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." But
we have seen that the highest worship and service on
earth, and in heaven, is rendered to the Son. There
fore, he is the Lord our God.

(4) Once more this truth is proved, by the conjunc
tion of the name of the Lord Jesus with that of our
heavenly Father, in offices where the association of the
Creator with his creature, would confound the infinite
distinction betwixt God and man.

This evidence, though somewhat of a circumstantial
and incidental character, is, from the exceeding solemn
ity of its use in the New Testament, peculiarly con
clusive. The combination of the name of the Most
High with one subordiiiately employed in the evident
AS Exod. xiv. capacity of his servant, is of easy explanation : though
jiidg. \u. 20. even this is rare in Scripture : but the conjunction of
the infinite God, with one co-ordinately engaged in
manifest equality of rank, is utterly inexplicable on
the Unitarian hypothesis. Examples will most readily
illustrate my meaning :

" Go ye, and disciple all nations, baptizing them
into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of
Matt. juviii.w. the Holy Ghost." Is it, for a moment, conceivable,
that he who sees the end from the beginning, and
knew that this would be the standard formula of Chris
tian baptism, would suffer that, in this most solemn
rite, the name of a creature with a derived being
should coalesce into his own name, which alone is Je
hovah, the increate Father ?

" He that loveth me shall be loved of my Father,
and I will love him : and will manifest myself unto

him If a man love me he will keep my words :

and my Father will love him, and we will come to
him, and make our abode with him." The love of

THE ROCK OF AGES. 59

CHAP. IV.

the Father and of the Son is represented as an equal
privilege, the access of the Father and of his Son to
the soul of the obedient believer as a common access,
and the indwelling of the Father and of the Son as a
combined habitation. What created being could use
such language ? It warrants the parallel declaration
of S. John s Epistle, " Truly our fellowship is with the
Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ," but it obliges i Joimi. s.
us, at the same time, to confess, that Jesus, in say
ing God was his Father, made himself equal with
God.

" This is life eternal, that they might know thee the
only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." Joim \\u. ~.
Compare with this " Grace and peace be multiplied
unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus
our Lord." If Jesus Christ wore onlv an. angelic or hu- 2 Pet. i. 2.
man prophet, revealing the Father, is it credible that
the intimate heart-knowledge of the expositor should
be put on the same level with the knowledge of God,
as equally essential to the life of the soul, and equally
indispensable for the sustenance of that life ?

Again, I take up the Epistles. The prefaces are
most suggestive, whether you regard the embassy of
the writers, or the designation of the church addi essed,
or the benediction implored.

As to the commission by virtue of which they acted,
you find almost every combination employed :

" Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus
Christ." xit.i.i.

" James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus

Christ." James i. 1.

" Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ." i Pet. i. i.

" Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus
Christ." lfttLJ&lt;

" Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ." Jude u

60 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP IV.

Gai. i. i. " Paul, an apostle, ... by Jesus Christ, and God the

Father, who raised him from the dead."

Would not this interchangeable variety, if Christ
were man only, confuse every reverential distinction
betwixt the Creator and the creature ? Though here
the difference betwixt the loftiest monarch and his
lowliest subject sinks into nothing, can you imagine
an earthly plenipotentiary sent forth, now styling him
self a servant of the emperor and an ambassador of
the chancellor ; now a servant of the emperor and
of the chancellor ; now an ambassador of the chancel
lor ; now a servant and an ambassador of the chan
cellor ; now the servant of the chancellor ; now
an ambassador (sent) by the chancellor and by the
emperor ? Who would not think that the imperial
supremacy was greatly compromised by such lan
guage ? And yet, there the distinction to be observed
is only between two men of equal nature, though un
equal rank. But no distinction is drawn in this celes
tial commission : Is not then the original authority
equal ?

The designation of the churches addressed, is also
perfectly unrestricted :

" Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to

cov. i. 2. them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus."

"To the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the

Eph. i. i. faithful in Christ Jesus."

"To all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at

j hii.i.i. Philippi."

" Unto the church of the Thessalonians, which is in

1 xhess. i. i. G d the Father, and in the Lord Jesus Christ." Also,

" The church .... in God our Father, and the Lord

2 Thess. i. i. Jesus Christ."

It is to these two last descriptions of the Thessalo-
nian church I would especially direct your attention.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 61

CHAP. IV.

Was then their spiritual status equally, indiscrimi
nately consistent in the Father and the Son ? Then
to that church the Father and the Son were equally
the Rock of their salvation.

And to complete the evidence, the benediction be
sought by the great apostle of the Gentiles is almost
invariably in these words :

"Grace be unto you, and peace from God our Father,
and the Lord Jesus Christ."

Why this mutual derivation of spiritual blessing
from the Father and the Son ? Surely, because
equally in the Father and in the Son have we eternal
life.

I might also adduce the prayers (quoted p. 52),
where, without regard to precedence of names, blessings i mess. HI. iu
are implored from God the Father, and the Lord Jesus 2 Thcss. n. 10,
Christ himself, as co-equal in their power to grant the
petition urged.

But I hasten to that wondrous benediction which
has dropped, as the gentle dew from heaven, upon the
church of Christ for eighteen centuries " The grace
of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the
communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all.
Amen." 2 &lt;:,,-. xiu. u.

Consider, I pray you, in the baptismal and in this
benedictory formula, the meaning for which those who
insist on the mere humanity of Jesus Christ con-

I may mention, in passing, that there is a remarkable addition
in the apostolic Epistles to Timothy and Titus. All the others that
bear the name of Paul, begin with Grace and peace ; these have
a most gracious enlargement, Grace, mercy, and peace. He who
knew so well a minister s heart, interlined, as it were, his usual
salutation-prayer, with merry. How precious a word to ministers !
And never more precious, than when treating of the awful myste
ries of the faith.

62 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV

tend. The first, as expounded by them, would run
thus :

Baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of

an exalted man, and of a certain influence of the Father.

The second would be thus interpreted :

The grace of a creature, and tlw love of the Creator, and

the communion of creative energy, be with you all. Amen.

Your reason and conscience alike, refuse to believe

that this inextricable confusion betwixt God and man,

between a person and an abstraction, is sanctioned by

Scripture. And then in 2 Cor. xiii. 14, why this

notable change of the order observed in Matt, xxviii.

19, if not to show that " in this Trinity, none is afore

creed of s. or a ft e r other, none is greater or less than another? "

Athanasius.

These two verses, pondered and prayed over, seem to
me sufficient to decide the controversy for ever.

But if further testimony is needed, we have that of
every creature in heaven, and on the earth, and under
the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are
in them, who cry without intermission and without
pause, and therefore without the possibility of any
distinction, (as between the dulia and latria of the
Romanists,) being drawn in their adoration " Bless
ing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him
that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for

Rev. v. is. ever and ever."

Or, yet stronger proof if that were possible, we read
of the hundred forty and four thousand, not only harp
ing with their harps and singing a new song which no
man could learn, but, as being themselves a living,
holy, acceptable sacrifice ; a sacrifice, unto whom ?
unto the Father only ? nay, they are " redeemed from
among men, the first-fruits unto God, and to the

Rev. xiv. 4. Lamb."

And, finally, of the plory of the heavenly Jerusalem,

THE ROCK OF AGES. 63

CHAP. ]\ r .

we read, " I saw no temple therein : for the Lord God
Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And
the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon,
to shine in it : for the glory of God did lighten it, and
the Lamb is the light thereof." 1{cv - ---.-*-

And when last we catch a glimpse of the throne of
Divine glory, whence flows the stream of crystal joy
for ever, it is called, as we have seen, " the throne of
God, and of the Lamb." Rev - xxii - l ~ s -

"Why (I press the question on your conscience) this
co-equal and co-operating glory of the Lamb with the
omnipotent God ? Could you substitute any created
man or angel for his excellent Name ? Never. For
he alone, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, is one with
God, and is God. The Lord, of his infinite mercy,
grant that I who write, and they who read these pages,
may stand with that palm-bearing multitude of the
redeemed, who have washed their robes, and made
them white in the blood of Jesus, and who cry aloud
evermore, " Salvation to our God which sitteth upon
the throne, and unto the Lamb." Rev. vn. 10.

(a) It remains that we consider the explicit asser
tions that Jesus Christ is Jehovah and God.

These assertions are neither few, nor obscure. But
I would venture again to remind my readers, that the
momentous inquiry in which we are engaged is no
mere intellectual problem, to be grasped by the power
of human reason, and to be solved by the skill of hu
man analysis : for " no man can say that Jesus is
the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." And I would ask i cor. \ii. .
them to lift up their hearts with me, that the Spirit of
truth may guide us into all truth, that he may glorify
Jesus, and that he may take of the things of Christ,
and show them unto us. J H" xvi 13

64 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV,

" The title JEHOVAH is the grand, the peculiar, and
the incommunicable name of God. It neither is ap
plied to any created being throughout the Scriptures,
nor can be applied in reason, for it imports the neces
sary, independent, and eternal existence of the Most
High. Of the infinite, self- existent essence implied
by this name, it is impossible for us to form a full and
adequate idea ; because we and all other creatures
have but a finite derivative essence. Our sublimest
notions of such uncircumscribed existence must fall
infinitely more short of the truth, than the smallest
animalcule or atom floating in the air of the vast di
mensions of universal nature. We could not even
have conceived anything of the peculiarities which
this name teaches us of the Almighty, if he had not
been pleased to reveal himself under it, and to declare

Se sdiu?iae? e those distinguishing peculiarities to us."

Now we find certain prophetic declarations in the
Old Testament regarding Jehovah fulfilled, as ruled
by the New Testament, in Christ Jesus. This is, per
haps, the most conclusive evidence that could be ad
duced an inspired interpretation of an inspired text
so that, if I may adapt the apostle s words, " by two
immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to
lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled

Heb. vi. is. for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us."

The voice of him that crieth
in the wilderness, Prepare ye
the way of Jehovah, make
straight in the desert a highway
for our God. Isai. xl. 3.

This is he that was spoken of
by the prophet Esaias, saying,
The voice of one crying in the
wilderness, Prepare ye the way
of the Lord. Matt. iii. 3.

Now John Baptist s voice, without controversy, was
heard in the wilderness, preparing the way for Christ.
Therefore, Christ is Jehovah, our God. p

f So it results from a comparison of Luke i. 76, and Matt. xi. 10,
that Jesus Christ is the Lord and the Highest. Cf. Jones, p. 4.

THE ROCK 01 AGES.

Unto you therefore which
believe he (Christ) is precious ;
but ... a stone of stumbling,
and a rock of offence, even to
them which stumble at the
word, being disobedient. \Pet.
ii. 7, 8.

CHIP. IV

Sanctify Jehovah of hosts
himself; and let him be your
fear, and let him be your dread.
And he shall be for a sanctuary ;
but for a stone of stumbling
and for a rock of offence to both
the houses of Israel. Isai. viii.
13, 14.

The stone of stumbling, as Isaiah affirms, is " Jehovah
of hosts himself," but as S. Peter interprets it, (for he
is referring to what is contained in the Scripture, ver.
6,) this stone is Christ. Therefore Christ is Jehovah
of hosts himself

And again another Scripture
saith, They shall look on him
(Christ) whom they pierced.

Join/ XIX. 37-

And I (Jehovah, which stretch-
oth forth the heavens, etc., see ver.
1) will pour upon the house of
David, and upon the inhabitants
of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace
and of supplication : and they
shall look upon me whom they
have pierced. Zech. xii. 10.

The prophet declares the One who is pierced is Jeho
vah speaking of himself, but according to S. John s
inspired interpretation, Christ crucified is here pre
dicted. Therefore Christ is "Jehovah, which stretch-
etli forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of
the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him."

Mine eyes have seen the King,
Jehovah of hosts. Isai. vi. 5.

These things said Esaias, when
he saw his glory, and spake of
him. John xii. 41.

The message recorded determines the occasion to be
the same. Therefore Jesus Christ, of whom the in
spired apostle is speaking, is Jehovah of hosts, before
whom the seraphim veiled their faces in lowliest ador
ation.

I (Jehovah) have sworn by

myself that unto me

every knee shall bow, every

We shall all stand before the
judgment-seat of Christ. Tor it
is written, As I live, saith the

66 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

tongue shall swear. Isai. xlv.
23.

Lord, every knee shall bow to
me, and every tongue shall con

fess to God. Rom. xiv. 10, 11.

S. Paul incontrovertibly establishes his assertion,
that we shall stand at the judgment-seat of Christ, by
this solemn oath of Jehovah, recorded by Isaiah.
Therefore, Christ is Jehovah, who says, (ver. 21,)
" There is no God else beside me ; a just God and a
Saviour : there is none beside me."

When we remember the solemn protest of him who
calls himself the jealous God " I am Jehovah : that
is my Name : and my glory will I not give to another : "
and when we reflect on the awful judgments de
nounced on those who render to the creature the su
preme worship due to the Creator, the above compari
son of Scripture with Scripture, wherein the Holy
Ghost interprets, explains, and applies his own lan
guage, presents the most irrefragable proof that Jesus
Christ is the Eternal, Incrcate, Alone, Jehovah of
hosts, the Highest, the Lord our God.

And here may be the most convenient place to in
troduce a few remarks on the witness we derive from
the word Lord. No doubt it is often used by classi
cal, and sometimes by the sacred writers, as a human
appellation. But then the facts remain, that it is the
word, equivalent to Adonai, which the Jews, through
their reluctance to pronounce the awful name Jehovah,
continually employed as its synonym ; that it is the
word by which Jehovah is uniformly translated by the
Septuagint, even in Exodus vi. 3 ; and further, that
standing by itself in the New Testament, it designates
in multiplied passages the Infinite Father. We must
look, therefore, broadly to its general use by Christ
and his apostles. And what is the result ? The word
occurs 737 times in the New Testament of

THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

these, in 18 instances it is confessedly applied to man
or men. In 54 instances it appears in the discourses
and parables of Christ, where the master, described as
Lord, represents or typifies the Father or himself :
and in 665 cases, the vast remainder, it is applied
indiscriminately to the Eternal Father or to the
Son. Lists of the first two classes are given be
low.* 1 Now in these eighteen instances (with scarcely
an exception) there was not the remotest possibility of
Divine worship being intended to the person thus
designated : indeed, in twelve of these cases, the
word is in the plural. But what of those very
numerous instances in which it is applied to Jesus
Christ ? Therein he is described as " Lord of all : " Ai ls *

of mastr:--

q Instances in which the word
occurs in the discourses and para
bles of the Gospels, where the lord,
master, or householder represents or
typifies God the Father, or God the
Sou :

Matthew vi. 21 : x. 21, 25 : xiii. 27 :
xviii. 25, 20, 27, 31, 32, 31: xx.
8 : xxi. 30, 10 : xxiv. 15, 16, IS,
50 : xxv. 1826, ten times.
Mark xii. 9 : xiii. 35.
Luke x. 2 : xii. 30 17, sr-ven times :
xiii. 8: xiv. 21, 22, 23: xvi. 3, 5,
S : xix. 16, 18, 20, 25 : xx. 13, 15.
John xiii. 10 : xv. 15, 20.
I was in some doubt whether to add

to this list

Matthew xxv. 11 : Luke xiii. 25 :
but in these addresses the parable
seems almost lost in the reality.

Now it is trifling with this question to assert that the passages adduced in
the second column, invalidate all the proof to be derived from the hundreds of
passages in which Jesus Christ is called Lord, and as Lord is believed in,
served, and worshipped. The servant of a nobleman who addresses him as my
lord, does not confound his duty to his master and his God.

Instances in which the word K-ro&gt;&lt;; is

used of man :

.Matt, xxvii. 03, by the Jews to Pilate.
Luke xix. 33, of the oic,te/-s of the colt.
John xii. 21, by the Greeks to Philip.
Acts xvi. 10, 19, maxfer.1 of the damsel.

- xvi. 30, by the jailer to Paul and
Silas.

- xxv. 20. by Festus, of Aut;-u&gt;iu.
1 Cor. viii. 5, lords many.

Gal. iv. 1, of the heir.
Ephes. vi. 5, 9,
Col. iii. 22 : iv. 1,
1 Tim. vi. 15, [Lord] of lords.
1 Pet. iii. 6, by Sara, of Abraham.
l\ev. vii. 11, by John to the chirr.
xvii. 11: xix. 16, [Lord] of lords.

68 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

.vts ix. 17. as the Lord, even Jesus, lie appeared to Saul in. vision :
as the Lord, S. Paul besought him to remove his

2 cor. xii. s, 9. thorn in the flesh : he is declared to be the second

i cor. xv. 47. man, the Lord from heaven: and as the Lord, the
righteous Judge, he will give a crown of righteoiisiiess

2 Tim. iv. s. to all them that love his appearing. Now to one thus
described as Lord, seeing that the name is applied to
the Father and the Son indiscriminately, so that, in
many places, the difficulty is very great of knowing
whether the Eternal Father or the Lord Jesus Christ
be intended, the risk of ascribing Divine worship
would be imminent indeed. The collation of two pas
sages from the Old, with two passages from the New
Testament, seems to clinch the argument :

Hear, Israel : the LORD our
God is one LORD (Kwpioe 6 646^
tin&v, K tiptoe dc tart LXX.~)
Deut. vi. 4.

And the LORD shall be king
over all the earth. In that day
shall there be one LORD, and his
name One (Kuptoe KOI TO ovo/ia

There is one Lord (tie
Uph. iv. 5.

To us ... there is ... one
Lord (tie Kvpwg) Jesus Christ,
by whom are all things, and \ve
by him. 1 Cor. viii. 6.
O.VTOV iv LXX.) Zecli. xiv. 9.

Here the apostle uses the very words, to which the
Jews clung with such tenacity as establishing the
fundamental truth of the Unity of God ; and adopting
the very words of the common version, the Septuagint,
applies them to Jesus Christ. There appears, therefore,
in this name of Christ, as used in the Neio Testament,
explicit declaration that he is the Eternal Jehovah.

As a link of connexion between the testimony of
the Old and New Testament to the person of the Mes
siah, I would now entreat the reader s calm and prayer
ful consideration of the first two chapters of the Epistle
to the Hebrews. The writer is proving the pre-eminence
of Christ over all other prophets, and the essential

THE ROCK OF AGES. 69

CHAP. IV.

difference betwixt his and the angelic nature. If ex
orbitant views of his Divine dignity had crept into
the church, here, at least, we should look for the cor
rection of error, and for definition of the truth. And
how then is he described ?

" God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in Or" in many

. fragments,"

time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last -rroXv/ut/pc^,
days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir cr.icor.xiH.V,,
of all things, by whom also he made the worlds ;

"Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express
image of his person (i/Troorao-twe), and upholding all things by
the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our
sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high ; being
made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance
obtained a more excellent name than they.

" For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou
art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I
will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son. And
again, when ho bringeth in the first-begotten into the world,
he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.

" And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels
spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.

" But unto the Son lie saith, Thy throne, O God, is for
ever and ever : a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy
kingdom : Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity ;
therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of
gladness above thy fellows. And, Thou, Lord, in the begin
ning hast laid the foundation of the earth ; and the heavens
are the works of thine hands : they shall perish ; but thou re-
mainest ; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment ; and as
a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed :
but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail." r Heb - 1 ~ 13 -

I would only here again remind you, that we have u
Divine interpretation of the Divine Scriptures. What-

The most severe criticism has not really brought one sustained
objection against the received version.

70 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CITA.P. IV.

ever be your preconceived view of these verses, the
apostle, writing as he was moved by the Holy Ghost,
adduces them as proof texts of the glory of Christ. In
the following chapter, we find this wonderful Saviour

Het&gt;. ii. 9, 10. made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering
of death, perfected through suffering, taking part of

Heb. ii. ii, 17, flesh and blood, in all things made like unto his bre
thren, having suffered, being tempted : but in these
verses I have quoted, how transcendent his Majesty !
The goodly fellowship of the prophets were his fore
runners. The innumerable company of angels are
his worshippers. He is seated on the everlasting
throne. He is the only-begotten Son of the Father.
He is addressed as God. He is adored as the im
mutable, immortal Jehovah. I feel any attempt to
enforce this evidence may mar its impressive grandeur,
and I can only pray that the word of God may here
be quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-
edged sword, in the hand of the Almighty Spirit of
God.

I might well close this part of my argument here.
Scripture declares that our God, whose name alone is
Jehovah, is One Jehovah, and is jealous of his own
attributes and of our confidence. In a word, we rest
on God. At the same time, Scripture declares that all
these Divine attributes belong to Jesus Christ, who
claims equal adoration and equal trust, as being him
self Jehovah, our God and Saviour. Our faith centres
on Jesus Christ. Christ is all, and in all, to the Chris
tian. In a word, we rest on Christ. Here is our
Rock, inexpugnabile saxum. You cannot add to its
security, for it is impregnable. You cannot increase
its stability, for it is immovable. You cannot make
absolute certainty more certain. Nevertheless, many
express assertions remain. And if I may return to

THE ROCK OF AGES. 71

CHIP. IV.

my former illustration from trigonometry, in the solu
tion of a triangle, if a side be measured and two angles
be observed, nothing can add to the perfect certainty
with which a mathematician tells you the number of
degrees in the third angle, and the length of the re
maining sides. Nothing would increase his assurance.
His conclusion is demonstrably true. Still, if an in
dependent observer could tell you the measurement of
those parts which were the object of algebraic investi
gation, the fact of their precise coincidence, which of
course and of necessity appears, is a further proof with
what security you may always rest on the results of
mathematical science. I would, then, draw into a
brief compass some few of these positive declarations.
They state expressly what other Scriptures prove de
monstratively.

Let us then humbly weigh that passage, against John i. i-u.
which sceptical criticism has directed its fiercest at
tacks, but from which they have all recoiled, and
which stands impregnable as ever, a rock foundation
for the faith of the humble believer.

lu the beginning was the "\Vord, and the Word was with
God, and the "\\ord was God. The same was in the beginning
with ( rod. All things were made by him ; and without him was
not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the
Hie was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness ;
and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent
from God, whose name was John. The same came for a wit
ness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him
might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear
witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth
every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world,
and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as
many as received him, to them gave he power to become the
sons of God, even to them that believe on his name : which

72 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the

will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and
dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the
only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. ... No
man hath seen God at any time : the only begotten Son, which
ver. is. is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him." s

Hence we learn that the Word was co-eternal with
God in the beginning, was God, was the Maker of all
things, was the Fountain of life and light to men,
dwelt incarnate amongst us, and thus himself, the
only-begotten Son, declared the Invisible Father.
That by the Word is designed the Lord Jesus Christ
is transparent. If anything however could add to our
assurance of this, it would be the fact of Philo, a Jew of
Alexandria, contemporary with Christ, but manifestly
ignorant of his history, describing THE DIVINE WORD,
as the Son of God, the First Begotten, the Image ol
God, the Angel, a second God, the instrument of Deity
in the creation, the High Priest and Mediator, per
fectly sinless himself, and the fountain of virtue to
men : and of S. John adopting this self-same name,
Tin: WORD, as one indicative of the Messiah, and un-

I earnestly recommend the reader to weigh Dr. Pye Smith s
lucid exposition of this passage, and pray that the question he
puts into the lips of the sincere Unitarian may be applied with
Divine power. " Am I not inwardly sensible that, in my attempts
to frame an interpretation of this paragraph, which may wear at
all the semblance of consistency, I am rowing against the stream ;
I am putting language to the torture ; I am affixing significations
to words and phrases, which all my efforts can scarcely keep me
from exclaim ; i g that they could never have been in the con
templation of the original writer ? Have I not then awakening
reasons for the suspicion that I have not framed my opinions with
1hat closr and faithful investigation, which the solemn greatness
of the case requires ? Am I not bound to review the \vhole sub
ject in the sight of the all-seeing God, and under the sense of my
accountableness to him as the author and revcaler of truth ? "

THE ROCK OF AGES. 73

CHAP. IV.

derstood by those who should read his Gospel. But
Scripture is its own best interpreter. And this same
apostle, writing in after years of the advent of Christ,
says, " He was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood ;
and his name is called THE WORD OF GOD." Christ Rev. xix. is.
then is the "Word, Christ is the Creator, Christ is God.
This introduction to his Gospel was, I doubt not, con
structed by the inspired apostle to be a bulwark against
every doubt, and accordingly, for near two thousand

years,

" as a tower of strength,
Which stood four-square to every wind that blew,"

it has kept the hearts of innumerable believers in per
fect peace.

There is another passage I cannot pass over, though
space forbids me to enter into it fully.

"But Jesus answered them. My Father workcth hitherto,
and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him,
because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that
God was his Father, making himself equal with God. Then
answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto
you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the
Father do : for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth
the Son likewise. For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth
him all things that himself doeth : and he will show him greater
works than these, that ye may marvel. For as the Father
raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them ; even so the Sou
quiekeneth whom he will. For the Father judgeth no man,
but hath committed all judgment unto the Son : that all men
should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He
that honoureth not the Son htmoureth not the Father which
hath sent him. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth
ray word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting
life, and shall not come into condemnation ; but is passed from
death unto life. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is
coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the

74 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CIU.F. IV.

Son of God : and they that hear shall live. For as the Father
hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in
himself; and hath given him authority to execute judgment
also, because he is the Son of man. Marvel not at this : for
the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall
hear his voice, and shall come forth ; they that have done good,
unto the resurrection of life ; and they that have done evil,
unto the resurrection of damnation." John v. 17 29.

The Jews accused our Lord of making himself equal
with God, because he said God was his Father. What
is his reply ? Instead of protesting against their
construction of his words, which, if only a man, he
would have done with indignation and abhorrence, he
proceeded, while acknowledging the subordination of
his mission as man, to set forth the original and essen
tial supremacy of his person as God. For if the Son
ver. ID. docth all things what things soever the Father doeth :
ver. 21. if the Son quickeneth whom he will : if the dead shall
ver. -27. hear his voice and live : if he executes judgment on
the universe : if all men must honour the Son, even as
ver. 2:-.. they honour the Father : then is he equally Al
mighty : equally the communicative fountain of life :
equally God who alone can raise the dead : equally
the Omniscient who alone can judge an assembled
world : and equally the centre of universal homage
and adoration.

I proceed to the utterance of Thomas, when the per
mitted touch of his risen Saviour scattered the dark
John xx. 2=1. clouds of unbelief " My Lord and my God ! " I
know that it has been alleged that this was an exclama
tion of surprise, addressed to God the Father ; but I
can hardly believe any earnest seeker after truth can
thus be baffled. JSTo one who knows the language of
the heart, can here misinterpret it. The apostle had
given up all for Jesus Christ : his Master had been

THE ROCK OF AGES. 75

CHAP. IV.

seized, and crucified, and buried : and Thomas faith
was sorely tried. But now his Lord stood before him
he could doubt no more; and "he answered and
said," (not without reason is the word answered here
inserted the words were addressed as an answer to
One who stood his proven Saviour before him : it was
the deep response of the heart of Thomas to Christ,)
" he answered and said, My Lord and my God ! "

I append other passages with a few brief remarks of
the most learned and impartial critics :

Rom. ix. ;~&gt;, " Of whom as concerning the flesh
Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever."

* E T ery Greek scholar must admit, that the fair and
jus 4 construction of the sentence is that which is ge
nerally received. P. Smith, vol. ii. p. 683.

Col. ii. 9, "for in him dwelleth all the fulness of
the Godhead bodily."

The Godhead, i. e. Deit y, the essential being of God
bodily, i. c. manifested corporeally in his present
glorified body. Before his incarnation, it dwelt in
him as the Aoyos acrapKos, but not (ra&gt;p.a.TLK&gt;s, as now
that he is the ACT/OS eWapKos. Alford.

Ephes. v. o, " The kingdom of [him who is] Christ
and God (cr r?) /SatrtAeta TOV \pia-Tov KO! eoi;)."

Not only the principle of the rule and the invari
able practice of the New Testament with respect to
0eo9, and all other attributives, compel us to acquiesce
in the identity of Xptoroi; KOL 0eo?, but the same truth
is evinced by the examination of the Greek fathers
.... Middleton, quoted by P. Smith, who says, It
this text had no relation to any controversy, and were
judged of solely by the common law of Greek construc
tion, no person would ever have disputed the propriety,
or rather necessity, of considering the two concluding
nouns as referring to one and the same object.

E 2

76 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

Titus ii. 13, " the glorious appearing- of our great
God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Of. Scholefield s note in his Hints. Middleton
says, If here the sacred writer did not mean to
identify the great God and the Saviour, he expressed
himself in a manner which [could not but] mislead
his readers. Quoted by P. Smith.

2 Pet. i. 1, "the righteousness of our God and
Saviour, Jesus Christ (ev biKaLcxrvvr] rov 0eo{S ij^wv Kal
cru&gt;Trjpos Irjcrov Xptoroi;) :" for construction compare the
expression a little below, (ver. 11,) "the everlasting
kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (rrjv
alcavLOV /SacriAeicty TOV Kvpuw fjn&v Kal aoiTrjpos I?7&lt;rou
XpjoroiS)." *

And, lastly, 1 John v. 20, " We are in him that is
true, in his Son Jesus Christ. This (person) is the
true God, and eternal life."

The circumstance which, in my mind, places the
matter beyond dispute is, that the same person is
here most evidently spoken of as " the true God and
ETERNAL LIFE." It will be granted that a writer is
the best interpreter of his own phraseology. Observe,
then, the expression which he uses in the beginning of
the Epistle. " The life was manifested, and we have
seen it, and show unto you that ETERNAL LIFE, which
uoimi. 2. . was with the Father, and was manifested unto us."
In these words it is admitted that the eternal life is a
title given to Jesus Christ. Compare, then, the two
passages. Is not the conclusion of the Epistle a

If the Unitarians insist that both the Father and the Son are
intended in these three passages, granting for a moment this were
possible, then as an aryumenlum ad seipsos, all the force of the
previous section (4) applies, and we find the conjunction of the
names God and Christ, where such association would confound
the distinction betwixt the Creator and his creature.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 77

CHIP. IV,

clear explanation of its beginning ? Wardlaw s Dis
courses, p. 59.

I would only ask you to compare with this, the
confession of the prophet, " Jehovah is the true God.
He is the living God." And here we have another j cr . x. in.
invincible argument that Jesus Christ is Jehovah,
very and eternal God.

This treatise does not profess to enter deeply into a
critical examination of the text of the New Testament;
but it may be a satisfaction to those whose minds have
been disturbed by rash assertions of the uncertainty of
manuscripts and versions, to know, that not one of the
texts, here relied on, is set aside by that learned and
eminent man, Dr. Gricsbach." To him Unitarians con
stantly appeal. Of him Dr. P. Smith writes : " No
man ever devoted, through a long life, such a perse
vering assiduity of labour to the critical study of the
New Testament, and no man lias ever so completely
united the confidence of all denominations of Christians
in the sagacity, judgment, and integrity of his critical
decisions." There are indee.i three texts often con
tended for, which the authority of this distinguished
professor precludes my bringing forward as evidence :
1 John v. 7, he believes to be an interpolation ; in Acts
xx. 28, he prefers nvpiov to &ov ; and in 1 Timothy iii.
16, he would substitute os for 0eoV But to these

u On the doctrine before us, Griesbach says : " So numerous
and clear are the arguments and the testimonies of Scripture iu
favour of the true Deity of Christ, that I can hardly imagine how,
upon the admission of the Divine authority of Scripture, and with
regard to fair rules of interpretation, this doctrine can by any man
be called in doubt. Especially the pas-sage, John i. 1 3, is so
clear, and so superior to all exception, that by no daring efforts
of either commentators or critics, can it ever be overturned, or be
snatched out of the hands of the defenders of the truth." Quoted
by P. Smith, vol. ii. p. 540.

78 THE ROCK OF AGES.

three texts, that we may not be drawn into needless
disputations, I have simply forborne to refer. The
argument does not demand them. It is incontrovert
ible without them. And therefore the inquirer may
be certified on the one hand, that if he rejected the
positive assertions that Christ is God, the great God
our Saviour, in whom dwelleth all the fulness of the
Godhead bodily, he would be violating those rules of
sound common sense which he must apply, to interpret
every other classical work ; and on the other hand, he
may be assured, that in resting on these declarations
he is, so far as the most calm and learned scholars
can assure him, relying on the very exact meaning of
the words intended by those who wrote under the in
spiration of the Holy Ghost.

And here, I would pause : and pray the reader to
review the impressive strength of that evidence which
the word of God has afforded.

Let us remember how earnestly Scripture detaches
our iiltimate confidence from any creature, and ex
clusively claims it for the one Infinite Creator : how
vivid is the contrast drawn betwixt man and God :
how direct are the prohibitions against trusting in
man, how express the precepts to rest on God : and
moreover how awful is the holy jealousy of the Most
High, if any one usurp the incommunicable glories of
his name, or intrude upon the claims of his supremacy :
so that the first great lesson of spiritual education may
be summed up in the words " Blessed is the man
that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is."

Further let us remember, how confessedly Scripture
requires us to repose our ultimate confidence in the
Lord Jesus Christ : setting him before us, as possessed
of all those incommunicable attributes of Godhead;
as our Creator, Preserver, and final Judge ; as the

THE ROCK OF AGES. 79

CHAP. IV.

hope of fallen man, to whom the eye of every believer
was directed by prophecy before his first advent ; and
as the great object of religious trust, a trust claimed
by himself when he came into the world, conceded by
his followers, and commanded by his inspired apostles :
so that the second great lesson of spiritual education
may be summed up in these words "Whosoever be-
lieveth in the Son of man shall not perish, but have
eternal life." John us. r..

Further let us remember, that comparing spiritual
things with spiritual, not only does Scripture ascribe
to Christ all the attributes of essential Deity, and thus,
seeing there is one God and none else, establish the
unity and equality of the Son with the Father ; but
moreover represents the Son as fulfilling towards us
all those offices of infinite greatness and goodness
which God only can sustain : that the appearances of
God Jehovah to the Old Testament saints, combined
with the declaration Xo man hath seen God at any
time, are utterly inexplicable on any other hypothesis,
and are absolutely decisive when the New Testament
assures us, it was the glory of the Lord Jesus they saw:
that the direct and Divine worship rendered to and
received by Christ, in earth and heaven, compels us to
acknowledge he is the Lord our God : that the name
of Jesus Christ is united with that of our heavenly
Father in offices, where the coalition of the Creator
with his creature would blend and confuse the infinite
distinction betwixt God and man : that, whereas the
most sensitive jealousy appears, throughout Scripture,
of any created being usurping the name of the supreme
Creator, inspired interpretations of inspired texts as
sure us that Jesus Christ is the Eternal, Jehovah of
hosts, the Lord our God : that as Lord, the one Lord,
he requires obedience and is obeyed, claims trust and

80 THE IIOCK OF AGES.

THAP. IV.

is trusted, demands adoration and is adored : and that,
finally, lie is addressed as God and Lord; that he,
the "Word, is declared to be God, to be with God in
the beginning, to be the Creator of all ; that he claims
equal honour ; that he is over all God blessed for ever ;
that his righteousness is the righteousness, and his
future advent the appearance of our great God and
Saviour Jesus Christ ; and that of him S. John de
clares, " this is the true God and eternal life."

Let us ponder these things, and reflect how cumu
lative is this evidence. I earnestly pray that the Di
vine Spirit may present it with irresistible power to
every conscience. If, after weighing the solemn de
clarations of Jehovah, guarding his own inalienable
glories, we had found the essential attributes of Deity
assigned in Scripture to Jesus Christ, this would have
been an unanswerable argument. If, after consider
ing our miserable condition as lost sinners, we had
found that, in the matter of eternal salvation, our hopes
are there directed to Jesus as our Saviour, this would
have been conclusive evidence, when we remember " I
am God, and beside me there is no Saviour." If,
leaving this line of proof, we review the appearances
of the Lord to the Old Testament saints, this would
have been a new and interesting series of demonstra
tions, which would lead us to the same result. If
again, quitting this, we carefully ponder the Divine
worship offered to him, and accepted by him, this is
decisive, when we remember, " Thou shalt worship the
Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." If,
pursuing another path of investigation, we study those
Scriptures where, in offices of the highest solemnity,
the name of Jesus Christ is so united with that of our
heavenly Father, that to accept this as the conjunction
of the Creator with his creature would confound all

THE ROCK OF AGES. 81

CHAP. IV.

distinction betwixt God and man, we are again led
irresistibly to the conclusion, that the Godhead of the
Father and of the Son is one, the glory equal, and
the majesty co-eternal. If once more we see how
prophecies regarding God Jehovah are claimed by the
New Testament as being fulfilled in Jesxis Christ, here
is inspired testimony to the supreme Godhead of the
Messiah. And finally, when we find the awful names
of God, and Saviour, and Redeemer, and Lord, ascribed
to him again and again, in a subject where misdirected
faith were idolatry and death, this again is explicit
assertion and transparent proof. I say, the evidence
is cumulative. It is not a long elaborate catena, the
strength of which is the strength of its weakest link.
If the reader thinks any text is inapplicable, let him
dismiss it. This proof rests on hundreds of texts.
The whole drift of Scripture, from Genesis to Revela
tion, establishes it. It is interwoven with the very
texture of the sacred writings. The lines of argument
are distinct and independent ; and yet, when presented
in their collective strength, they are so mutually cor
roborative, that it seems as if we heard the voice again
from heaven saying, "This is my beloved Son, hear
ye him : " and when we humbly ask, " Who is he,
Lord, that I might believe in him ? " and bend a re
verential ear to catch the import of the answer, it is
this, " Unto you is born a Saviour, which is Christ the
Lord, Emmanuel, Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty
God, the Father of eternity, the Prince of Peace."

But cordially to embrace this needs, I know, the con
vincing power of the Holy Ghost. I feel my helpless
ness. I give myself to prayer. The altar is built as
once on Carmel, the trench is made, the wood is piled,
the sacrifice disposed in order. But it needs the fire
from heaven. Hear me, O Lord, hear me : glorify

E 3

82 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. IV.

cai. i. 16. thy Son that thy Son also may glorify thec. Reveal

John vs. 44. thy Son to those who seek thee. Draw them unto him.

Thou commandedst the light to shine out of darkness :

shine in their hearts, shine in my heart, to give the

light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face

s cor. iv. e. of Jesus Christ.

Bear with me, my friends, for giving utterance to
prayers, which have been long pleaded at the throne of
grace. They have not been offered in vain. And when
the fire of the Lord falls on any heart, it shall consume
the sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust ;
and the deep response of that believing soul shall be,
" My Redeemer, thou art the Lord my Saviour, thou
art God."

CHAPTER V.

CEAP - * I PROCEED, therefore, to my fourth proposition :

That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament
alike, presents to tis the incarnation and the mission of the
Saviour, as the extremity of condescension in Jehorah,
that thereby he might exalt us to everlasting life.

(1) The Scriptures already cited prove beyond con
tradiction the co-equal, co-essential, co-eternal God
head of the Son. And here we have attained that
vantage ground from which, I am persuaded, we may
most safely with the adoring angels stoop down and
look into the humiliation and the humanity of Jesus
i ct. i. 12. Christ.

Let us only follow the pathway along which Scrip
ture does, as it were, lead us by the hand. Let us ac
knowledge the infinite perfections of him who is the
Alone Supreme Jehovah. Let us confess the infinite

THE ROCK OF AGES. 83

CHIP. V.

demerit of rebellion against him. Let us admit that
he has opened to us in his word a way of access, where
by we, the sinful and the sunken, may be brought
nigh to him, the absolutely Holy and Good One, who
is "of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look
on iniquity." Let us remember that this reconcile- Hub. i. is.
ment is spoken of as a salvation, to accomplish which
Omnipotence travels in the greatness of its strength, isai. Kin. i.
and which Omniscience declares to have been a mystery
hidden in God from the beginning of the world : arid EI&gt;II. m. -&gt;.
that to fulfil this work we find a wondrous mission re
vealed, in which the Lord God and his Spirit send
forth, and the Eternal I AM is the sent One. Let us I*-" XMII. is.
then on the sure testimony of Scripture acknowledge,
1hat all the attributes, the honours, and the rights of
Jehovah are ascribed to this Sent One, whose name is
called Jesus, for he shall .save his people from their sh.u. i. 21.
sins ; who claims himself equality with God as his
only-begotten Son ; and who is associated with God in
every supreme office of Deity. And lastly, let us accept
the simple fact, as recorded in the Bible, of Christ s
descent from above ; that he, the Word, who in the
beginning was with God and was God, was made flesh joim \. i, it.
and dwelt among us ; that he came down from heaven ; .inim a\. in.
that he proceeded forth and came from God, forsaking Juimviii. 12.
the glory which he had with the Father before the
world was ; that being originally (virdp\atv) in the J&lt;&gt;\m \vn. 5.
form of God, he emptied himself, and took upon him
the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of I lm. a. , 7.
men : that by him the universal Creator by him in
carnate and crucified it pleased the Godhead to re
concile all things unto himself : that he being the coi. 1. 19, 20.
brightness of his Father s glory and the express image
of his person, in the bringing many sons of God to
glory, forasmuch as the children were partakers of

84 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

flesh and blood, also himself likewise partook of the
same, that through death he might destroy him that
had the power of death, that is, the de-sol, and deliver
fliem who through fear of death were all their life

Heb.i.sju.10, subject to bondage.

Now our whole souls are filled with one thought
the condescension of God. Now we shall not be
stumbled at passages which speak of the exceeding
humiliation to which he stooped. As we assign no
limit to the height of his glory, we shall assign none
to the depths of his grace. Yea, so far from taking
offence at the inferiority of the position which he as
sumed, the very lowliness of his incarnation and the
very degradation of the death he died, will kindle in
us a brighter and a more burning gratitude, when we
remember that though rich it was for our sakes he

2 Cor. viii. o. became poor ; and that for us, his wayward and wan
dering sheep, the chief Shepherd offered up himself as
the Lamb of God, laying down his life of his own ac
cord, and taking it again to die no more.

(2) Perhaps to some minds it might have seemed
more congruous with the Divine Majesty, supposing it
needful for our salvation that God should humble him
self at all, that the descent should have been less steep,
and the humiliation less lowly. They would have
chosen not some little insignificant planet like earth
as the scene of his self-abnegation, but some central
orb of metropolitan grandeur, and would have gathered
the whole intelligent creation as spectators around the
splendid arena. They would fain have had him assume
not the body of our abasement, but haply an angelic
nature, wherein, as some seraph of surpassing bright
ness, he should have wrought deeds of miraculous
beneficence. And chiefly, they would have shunned for
him the ignominy of the cross, and have selected what

THE ROCK OF AGES. 85

CHiP. V.

they deemed some more glorious method of self-sacri
fice, whereby he should have paid the price of our re
demption. This they would have called a salvation
worthy God. But surely, as the heavens are higher
than the earth, so are the ways of Jehovah higher than
our ways and his thoughts than our thoughts. His isai. u-. 9.
work is perfect. Let us remember that whatever of
material and physical glory we add to the mission of
Christ, beyond what is needful for the evidence of that
mission, we subtract from its moral and spiritual glory.
Between the unapproachable splendours of the God
head and the various forms of created intelligence
there is a distance absolutely immeasurable. For
the increate Jehovah to have assumed the nature of
the highest archangel would have been an infinite
descent. Let us thus far confide with child-like confi
dence, that herein was manifested omniscient love,
when God chose the world this little world of ours
to be the theatre of the mighty conflict, and sent his
only-begotten Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to
suffer death upon the cross, and to be the propitiation

n Rom. viii. 3.

ior our sms. i j,,i m i\ . y, 10.

" The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us."
There is a majestic condescension in these few words
that nothing can equal. He was made man. " By
himself, by his friends and disciples, by his enemies
and persecutors, Jesus Christ was spoken of, as a proper
human, being. His childhood was adorned with filial
affection, and the discharge of filial duty. His intel- tnke u. 4o-r2.
lectual powers, like those of other children, were pro
gressive. In his earliest years, he embraced with
eagerness the means of improvement. He had large
experience of human suffering. His lot was one of
severe labour, poverty, weariness, hunger and thirst.
He affected no austerity of manners, nor did he enjoin

86 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

it upon his followers. While he mingled in the com
mon sociability and the innocent festivities of life, he
sustained a weight of inward anguish which no mortal
could know. He was a man of sorrows and acquainted
with grief. He looked forward to the accumulation of
suffering which he knew would attend his last hours,
with feelings on the rack of agony, with a heart ex
ceedingly sorrowful even unto death, but with a meek
and resigned resolution, a tender and trembling con
stancy, unspeakably superior in moral grandeur to the
stern bravery of the proudest hero. In his last hours,
with a bitterness of soul more excruciating than any
.bodily sufferings, he cried, "My God, my God, why
hast thou forsaken me ? " while yet, he promised
heaven to a penitent fellow- sufferer, and died in an
act of devotional confidence, triumphing that his work
was finished. Thus he died, but rose again, that he
might be the Lord of both the dead and living ; and
he ascended to his Father and our Father, to his God
and our God. This was the man Christ Jesus : a man

Acts ii. 2-2. demonstrated from God by miracles, and prodigies, and
signs, which God did by him : a man ordained by

Actsxvii.si. Gfod, to be the judge of the living and the dead.

" It is delightful to dwell on the character of this
unrivalled man : not only because in no other, since
the foundation of the world, has the intellectual and
moral perfection of our nature been exhibited, but
because the contemplation of such excellence refreshes
and elevates the mind, and encourages to the beneficial
effort of imitation. He always did the things which
pleased his heavenly Father. Love, zeal, purity, a
perfect acquiescence in the Divine will on every occa
sion, and the most exalted habits of devotion, had their
full place and exercise in his mind. The most refined
generosity, but without affectation or display; mild-

THE ROCK OF AGES. 87

ness, lowliness, tenderness, fidelity, candour, a delicate
respect for the feelings as well as the rights and in
terests of others, prudence, discriminating sagacity, the
soundest wisdom, and the noblest fortitude, shone from
this Sun of righteousness with a lustre that never was
impaired." v

Believe me, we yield to none in the strength of con
viction with which we hold to the humanity of Jesus
Christ. " The "Word was made flesh, and dwelt among
us." "We take our stand fearlessly on this. This un- J
locks all those texts on which Unitarians are wont to
insist, asserting the inferiority and subordination of
the Son of man to the Father. "We do not hide these
truths. "We do not gloss them over. We do not ex
plain them away. They are essential to our faith.
As combined with the revelations of his essential God
head, they form that inimitable grace which is our
salvation. The foot of the ladder must rest on earth,
as the top of it reaches to heaven. ,

If our doctrine is the truth, that there subsist in the
es-dice &lt;&lt;! One Jehovah, three who are called the Fa
ther, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, coequal and co-
eternal ; and that it is the design of the Father, and
the will of the Son, with the consenting pleasure of
the Holy Spirit, that the Son, for the recovery of
fallen man, should empty himself, not of his Godhead,

* I make no apoiogy for condensing and abstracting the two
preceding paragraphs from the profound treatise of Dr. Pvc
Smith, to which I have frequently referred, on " Scripture Testi
mony to the Messiah" (vol. ii. 33 i 337). Permit me to take
this opportunity of urging any who need a calm and candid in
vestigation of this momentous subject, to study his noble apology
for our faith. Most thankful should I be, if my humble essay
formed the stepping-stone which should lead any to that truly
great work.

88 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

which were impossible, but of his glory, and take our
human nature into mysterious union with his Divine
nature, so that God and man make one Christ : if this
is spoken of in Scripture as the extremity of Divine
condescension, and humiliation, devised and accom
plished, that hereby guilty men might have a medium
of access to the Holy Deity, or rather, foregoing ab
stract terms, that we might have a mediator betwixt
us and God, one with God by reason of his eternal
essence, one with us by reason of the humanity he
deigned to assume : how otherwise could such a rela
tionship have been expressed than in such or such like
words " There is one God and one mediator betwixt
God and man, the man Christ Jesus ; who gave him-

i Tim. it a, c. self a ransom for all ? " or such a salvation be de
scribed than "This is life eternal, that they should
know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom

joij. x\ii. s. thou hast sent ? " Looking forward, as the man Christ
Jesus, to his translation from this world of suffering
to the glory of his Father s throne, (remember he had
emptied himself, taken upon him the form of a serv
ant, humbled himself if these words mean anything,
they imply a spontaneous descent from the higher to
the lower,) how otherwise could he describe his return
from that present estate of afflicted humanity, than in
such or such like words " If ye loved me, ye would
rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father ; for my

jchu xiv. as. Father is greater than I." Having descended with
the express design of doing his Father s pleasure, of
serving a perfect service, of rendering a spotless obedi
ence to the law, of exhibiting a Divine model of self-
denial ; how otherwise could he declare his mission
than in these or similar terms " I came down from
heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him
that sent me ? " Standing forth, the Author and

THE ROCK OF AGES. 89

CHAP. V.

Finisher of the faith (TTJ? Trurreoos) ; the exemplar of that Heb. xu.2.

faith we are to copy ; AS MAN, working his miracles

not by "virtue of his Divinity ever inherent in him, but

by virtue of a perfect faith in the power of the Father ;

that faith which with us is intermittent and often

overborne, being with him constant without defect,

and victorious without defeat ; how otherwise could

he reveal the secret and entire dependence of his soul

on God, than in language such as this, " I can of

mine own self do nothing." " The Father that dwell-

eth in me, he doeth the works ? " John v. so;

xiv. 10.

(3) These passages affirm his proper humanity, and
his humble mission as a servant. This humanity we
assert as strongly, this mission we believe as verily as
yourselves. All that faith requires is to act upon the
great principle of comparing spiritual things with
spiritual ; and, wherever we find any assertion of his
subordination as man, if we can place by its side ti
parallel assertion of his supremacy as God, faith de
mands nothing more. Often, the immediate context
will supply the corrective, and adjust the balance. If
not, we shall never consult in vain the whole counsel
of the lively oracles of God.

Thus in the Old Testament, as man the seed of the
woman is bruised in his heel : as God he achieves a
victory surpassing human strength, he bruises the
serpent s head. Against him as man, we read in the cen m. i.\
second Psalm, the kings of the earth set themselves :
to him as the anointed Son of God, Divine royalty is r sa . \\.-&gt;, 7, i
ascribed and universal trust attracted. As man lie
appears at the close of the cx th Psalm, like a weary
traveller, drinking of the wayside brook and revived
therewith ; but the opening verses describe him as
the victorious Lord of all on the throne with Jehovah. Psa. . i, 7.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.
Isai. ix. 6.

Isai.xi. 1,4.

Isai. liii. 3, 6.

?ch. xii. 10;
xiii. 7.

Luke ii. 52.

If you regard his humanity, Unto us a child is born :
if you regard his Deity, his name is the Mighty God.
As David s son, he is the rod out of the stem of Jesse :
as David s Lord, he shall smite the earth with the rod
of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he
slay the wicked. In respect of his manhood, he grows
up as a tender plant, despised and rejected : in virtue
of his Godhead, he bears the iniquity of us all, and
with his stripes we are healed. As man, he is the
pierced, smitten shepherd : as God, he is Jehovah s
fellow.

And when we come to the New Testament, the evi
dence is yet more abundant. Space forbids to do more
than place side by side, with a very few remarks, those
Scriptures which reveal the characteristics of his man
hood and his Godhead. Those on the left hand will
record his functionary subordination as man ; those on
the right his essential supremacy as God :

I came down from heaven
riot to do mine own will, but
the will of him that sent me.
John vi. 38.

Pather, I will (Oi\a&gt;.)JoA
xvii. 24.

The Son wills (jSouXjjrai) to
reveal him. Matt. xi. 27.

His will, therefore, as man, was subjected to that of
his Father : as God, was ever in perfect harmony with
his Father s will, but was self- existent, free, efficacious.

Of that day and hour know- The Father showeth the Son
cth no man, no, not the angels all things that himself doeth.
which are in heaven, neither John v. 20.
the Son, but the Pather. Mark As the Father kuoweth me,
xiii. 32. even so know I the Father.

John x. 15.

Lord, thou knowcst all things.
John xxi. 17.

Just as we read, Jesus increased in wisdom, and
therefore there were subjects unknown to him at twelve
years of age, which were acquired by him or revealed

THE ROCK OF AGES. 91

CHAP. V.

to him afterwards : so in Mark xiii. 32, Jesus is speak
ing in his human nature. This point was not made
known to him as man, by the Spirit. And since his
manhood is spoken of as a condition of his prophetical
office (Dent, xviii. 15, of thy brethren) he is declaring
as an ambassador, what lay within his commission, and
this day and hour he was not empowered, as Prophet,
to reveal. w The contrast verses sufficiently prove he

I think we may safely draw here a parallel betwixt the om
nipotence and omniscience of Christ. We have seen (p. 88, 89)
that no exception can be taken against his Almighty power as
God from the words, "I can of mine own self do nothing;" be
cause, a.t man, he wrought his miracles, not by virtue of his Deity,
which was ever inherent in him, but by virtue of a pi rf cct faith
in the power of the Father, through the plenitude of the Holy
Ghost. Though as God ever and always able to do all things, he,
of his own Divine will, resolved not to exert this personal omnipo
tence betwixt his incarnation and his crucifixion. This resolution
was part of the Kivuaif; spoken of, Phil. ii. 7. Therefore, with re
spect to the exertion of power, by his spontaneous act of self-
emptying, "the Son was able to do nothing of himself." His
might was his Father s might. And the mean of its exertion was
his own unfaltering faith. "\Ve have an illustrious example of this
in his thanksgiving prayer, when raising Lazarus from the dead :
" Father, I thank thec that thou hast heard me. And I knew that
thou nearest me always," John xi. 41, 42. So with regard to this
other attribute of Deity, omniscience. No exception against his
infinite wisdom, as God, can justly be taken from the words, " The
Son knoweth not that day or hour." At his incarnation, he of
his own accord resolved not to use, as i.ian, during the days of his
humiliation, the knowledge which his omniscience as God would
afford. That resolution again was part of the KIVHJ&lt;H. The wis
dom he used was the illumination of the Spirit given to him with
out measure. The means of its acquirement were diligence and
prayer.

All human illustrations of this great mystery must fail. Bur
have we not heard in chivalry of a warrior, in order to meet a par
tially disabled adversary on equal terms, allowing his own right
arm to hang unemployed by his side? Have we not heard in

92 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

shared the infinite counsels of his Father, compre
hended the Incomprehensible, and is himself Om
niscient.

diplomacy of an ambassador, with sealed instructions which he is
only to open at his discretion, conducting a negotiation without
knowing the mind of the senate he represents, though the means
of knowing it were ready to his hand in his portfolio. That war
rior could use his arm, and yet by his own resolution he could not
use it. That ambassador could break the seals, and yet in the
best exercise of his judgment he could not do so. The one would
truthfully declare, " I cannot stretch forth the light hand of my
power :" and the other, " I do not know the counsels of my state."
The one fights as if he had no right arm ; and the other negotiates
as if the will of his country had not been confided to his keeping.
I offer these illustrations with much diffidence, knowing how far
short every earthly figure of these heavenly mysteries must fall.
But if it be possible for finite man in all sincerity to declare, when
physically able, " I cannot act," and when the means of knowledge
are his, " 1 do not know ;" how much rather may these things be
in the mission of the Infinite Son of God.

There are precipices on the right hand and on the left. Let us
not go a hair s breadth beyond the declarations of Scripture : but
at the same time let us accept, with confidence and candour, all
those declarations. From everlasting to everlasting, before, during,
and after his humiliation, Jesus Christ was, and is, and is to come,
the Lord God Omnipotent and Omniscient. " Power belongeth
unto God," Psa. Ixii. 11. " Wisdom and might are his," Dan. ii.
20. They are the inalienable attributes of Deity. They could
never be laid aside. They could never cease to exist in God.
But we must not confound non-existence and non-exertion. Thus
the patriarch argues, " Will he plead against me with his great
power ? No," Job xxiii. 6. Thus the Psalmist records, " He did
not stir up all his wrath," Psa. Ixxviii. 38. And thus the prophet
solaces us, " He stayeth his rough wind in the day of the east
wind," Isai. xxvii. 8. These words indicate that Jehovah did not
put forth all his almightiness and all his holy indignation. That
is to say, to use the language of men, that these attributes were
in part unexcited or unexerted. Omnipotence restraining itself
is not therefore a view of the actings of Deity unwarranted by

THE ROCK OF AGES. 93

CHAP. V-.

I go uuto the Father ; for my
Father is greater than I. John
xiv. 28.

Making himself equal with
God. John v. 18. With our
Lord s consequent discourse, ver.

1929. (See p. 73, 74.)
Inferiority of rank as man, as mediator, as the
apostle and servant of his Father having for us
spontaneously stooped from the throne of his glory
is asserted in the first quotation : equality of nature as
to co-operation, self-existence, infinite knowledge, uni
versal trust, is proved in the second.

The very texts which most strongly declare the hu
manity of Jesus, are sufficient, as Coleridge somewhere
observes, to refute those who from them would deny

Scripture. Why then should we be stumbled at these expressions
of the God-man regarding himself?

Nay, so far from being staggered at these things, the con
siderations, which they suggest, are of the utmost value when
we contemplate Jesus, as our example : " Who in the days of
his flesh oifered up prayers and supplications with strong crying
and tears to him that was able to save him from death ; who
was in all points tempted like as we are ; and who in that he
has suffered being tempted is able lo succour them that arc
tempted," Heb. ii. IS ; iv. 15 ; v. 7. He put himself as far as
possible on a level with us ; for "in all things it behoved him to
be made like unto his brethren," Ileb. ii. 17. We feel all the
suasive attraction of sympathy. We acknowledge all the power
of the example of our elder Brother. We may draw from the
same Fountain from whence the man Christ Jesus drew. The
way of access througli his blood is open to us. The Spirit is
willing to strengthen us with might in the inner man. Yea, God
in Christ is himself our wisdom and our strength. We have all
the consolations of his perfect humanity; but these truths do not
minish aught from his perfect Divinity. Nay, they glorify it
with new beauties, where we see how, in the weakness of human
flesh but in the might of Divine faith, how, in the gradual de
velopment of human powers but in the full enlightenment of
the Divine Spirit, his absolute indefectible goodness, the goodness
of infinite love, proved him to be the only-begotten of the Father,
God of God, Light of light, very God of very God.

94 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

his Deity. How could a mere man, without absurd
presumption, solemnly announce that God the Father
was greater than he ? How could he be made flesh ?
How coidd it be a proof of his humility that he was
made in the likeness of man ?

This may be the fittest opportunity to say a few
words on the answer of Christ to the ruler, " "Why
callest tliou me good ? There is none good but one,
that is, God ; but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the
Matt. xix. is, commandments." This young man, coming to Christ
and exclaiming, " Good teacher, what good thing
(8iaovca/\e ayaOe, TL ayadov^) shall I do that I may
have eternal life ? " manifestly only recognised him
as a human teacher ; as such, called him good ; nay,
put his own good works on the same level of merit.
The Lord refused such homage. It was founded on
false assumptions. Its acceptance would have strength
ened a yet unhumbled self- righteousness. " Why," he
asked, " why callest thou me good ? " The stress is
on the "why." The answer to that why, would
discover an unsuspected depth of self-ignorance. But
the Lord proceeded to probe the young man s heart,
and tried him by the second table of the law wherein
he rested. The ruler was found wanting. We know
not his after history ; but thus, at least, one barrier
was broken down which, unremoved, must have ever
kept him from confessing his need of an atonement
for sin, from imploring the advocacy of Jesus Christ
the righteous, and from trusting in the perfect good
ness of him, before whom unconsciously then he knelt,
Jehovah our righteousness. But to resume.

To sit oil my right hand, and
on my left, is not mine to give,
except to those for whom it is
prepared of my Father. Matt.
xx. 23.

To him that overcometh will
I grant to sit with ine in my
throne. Bcc. iii. 21.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

The translation given above of our Lord s reply to
Salome simply omits the words which are not in the
original/ The promise to the church of Laodicea
sufficiently proves that, in respect of heavenly digni
ties, Jesus Christ does as he wills with his own.

CHAF. V.

God so loved the world, that
he gave his only-begotten Son.
John iii. 16.

It pleased the Lord to bruise
him ; he hath put him to grief :
when thou shalt make his soul
an offering for sin. Isai. liii. 10.

Whom God hath raised up,
having loosed the pains of death.
Acts ii. 21.

He (the Father of glory) set
him at his own right hand in
the heavenly places, far above
all principality and power.
Eph. i. 20, 21.

Christ also loved the church,
and gave himself for her. Eph.
v. 25.

I lay down my life that I
might take it again. No one
(oi dtis) taketh it from me. I
have power to lay it down, and
I have power to take it again.
John x. 17, 18.

Destroy this temple (his body),
and in three days I will raise it
up. John ii. 19.

He ascended up on high, he
led captivity captive.- Eph. iv. 8.

Having spoiled principalities
and powers, he made a show of
them openly. Col. ii. 15.

In these passages you will observe that, on the one
hand, the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus
as man, being subordinate to the Father and at his
disposal, are said to have taken place at his Father s
ordination : while on the other hand, as God, Christ
gives himself, raises himself, ascends in his own might,
and as the King of glory, the Lord of hosts mighty in
battle, enters the everlasting doors.

1 Cf. Scholefield s Hints, and Alford ; and for construction
a\X clg t lToinarr-at compare precisely similar idiom in the previous
chapter, ver. 11, u\\ dg Silomt, where it is properly translated
save.

J Unitarians object to i$ovaia being here translated power/
(they would prefer authority, ) but it is so rendered of the
Father s power, Luke xii. 5 ; Acts i. 7, and (as they would add)
Jude 25. The previous clause declares the spontaneity of the gift.

96 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

JSneas, Jesus Christ maketh
thee whole. Acts ix. 34.

And now, Lord . . . grant . . .
that signs and wonders may be
done by the name of thy holy
child Jesus. Acts iv. 29, 30.

If the first exalts the Father, the second, as distinctly,
exalts the Son as the immediate Author of miraculous
healing.

Forgiving one another, even
as God for Christ s sake hath
forgiven you. Ep/i. iv. 32.

Forgiving one another, even
as Christ forgave you. Col.
iii. 13.

Now the Father, now the Son, is referred to as the
first cause of forgiveness.

To us (there is but) one God
the Father, of whom (iK ov) are
all things, and we unto (c c)

And one Lord Jesus Christ,
by whom (Si ov) are all things,
and we by him. 1 Cor, viii. 6.

him. 1 Cor. viii. 6.
On this, Dr. P. Smith says " Lord is not put as a de
signation secondary and inferior to God. It attributes
dominion ; and the extent of the dominion must be ac
cording to the nature of the case in any given instance.
Is there anything, then, in this case to direct our
conception? Yes : all things are by him/ or through
him, as their immediate and efficient Cause. The
identical phrase is used, which is twice by the same
writer employed with regard to the Eternal Father
(Rom. xi. 36 ; Heb. ii. 10) : by whom (OL } ov ra -navTa)
are all things." To me who believe the reference to be
to Deut. vi. 4, as stated p. 68, no proof could be
stronger than this of the Divine Supremacy of the
Messiah. But at all events, " the Deity of Christ can
no more be denied because the Father is here called
the One God, than the dominion of the Father can
be denied because the Son is called the One Lord. " z

* There are two other passages to which Unitarians sometimes
refer, but the deduction they draw from them is, in each case, re
futed by the context.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

Ye are Christ s ; and Christ
is God s. 1 Cor. iii. 23.

The head of Christ is God.
1 Cor. xi. 3.

Then cometh the end, when
he shall have delivered up the
kingdom to God, even the Fa
ther; ....

Then shall the Son also him
self be subject unto him that

I am in the Father, and the
Father in me. John xiv. 10.

He (the Son) is the head of the
body, the church. Col. i. IS.

Of his (Christ s) kingdom there
shall be no end. Luke i. 33.

The everlasting kingdom of
our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. 2 Pet. i. 11.

Thy throne, O God, is for ever
and ever. . . . Thou art the

CHiP. V.

(1) " The first-born of all creation " TTP^TOTOKOQ va.or\c, KT KHUQ,
or "of the whole creation." Col. i. 15.

But the apostle continues

"For by him were all things created."

If you regard the word first-born in its general acceptation
among Eastern nations, it imports lordship, excellence, dignity ;
and as such the clause might well have been translated here, "The
chief of all creation." But if you press for a more exact signifi
cance, it absolutely resists the interpretation that Christ is himself
a creation of God, for then it would have been TT^TOKTKJTOQ, first
created, as Chrysostom observes (see Scott), not Trpwroroeoc, first
born. The (-roxog) guards this, and the Trpturo-, so far from
assuming him to be the first creature, declares his pre-existent
priority to all creation, according to the well-known Greek usage
of the superlative for the comparative, (see John i. 15, on TrpoJrof
fnov i)v, for he was before me) ; and the clause might have been
rendered by that in our version of the Athanasian creed : " Be
gotten before the worlds." Thus the phrase by itself is an un
ambiguous testimony to his Deity ; and the succeeding clauses,
ascribing to him the creation of all, prove him increate ; for, if a
creature, he made himself, which is absurd.

(2) The beginning of the creation of God, / px&gt; /- R?i . iii. 14.
Compare with this, " I am, saith the Lord, the beginning and

the end" (} dp x ?) nai rb riXo^. Rcc. i. 8 ; xxi. G ; xxii. 13.

The above comprise all the instances of the use of apx&gt;i in the
Apocalypse, and sufficiently prove that, as used in chap. iii. 14, it
regards the pre-existent eternity, the "from everlasting" of the
Lord, and as such declares him to be the beginning or origin, or
originator, or precisely as we say, the First Cause of the creation
of God.

08 THE ROCK OP AGES.

CHAP. V.

put all things under him, that
God may be all in all. 1 Cor.
xv. 21, 28.

same. ... Sit on my right hand.
Heb. i. 8, 12, 13.

Christ is all and in all. Col.
iii. 11.

From these passages, on the one side, we learn that
Jesus Christ as the second Man, the federal Head of
his church, in ascending to our God and Father has
ascended to his God and Father ; and that as our
surety he does his Father s will ; and that a time will
come when he will no longer exercise his mediatorial
office, by pleading the virtue of his blood for penitent
sinners (seeing that sin and death are for ever abol
ished) ; but as the representative of us, his blood-
bought children, (for the memory of his dying love
shall never fade throughout eternity,) will keep his
Father s commandments and abide in his love ; and
that thus for ever and for ever Jehovah shall fill the
universe with the unclouded effulgence of his everlast
ing name and essence, LOVE. On the other hand, we
learn that Christ and his Father are one ; that he has
a real and undivided supremacy ; that his kingdom
shall never wax old, his glory never pale, his royalty
never pass away ; and that for the endless ages of im
mortality in heaven and earth the manifestation of the
love of God shall be through him, who is the bright
ness of his Father s glory, and is seated on the right
hand of the Majesty on high.

I append only one couplet more ; for the same prin
ciple applies to all the passages which have been, or
can be, brought forward to prove the subordination of
the Son.

In the midst of the throne
and of the four living creatures,
and in the midst of the elders,
stood a Lamb as it had been
slain. Rev. v. 6.

A pure river of water of life,
clear as crystal, proceeding out
of the throne of God and of the
Lamb. Rev. xxii. 1.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 99

CHAP. V.

Do you gather from the first passage that in Christ
glorified there are ineffaceable traces of Jesus and him
crucified ? from the last you learn that the perennial
and transparent stream of felicity the joy of the
Holy Ghost flows equally and co-ordinately from
the eternal Father and the eternal Son.

I have now, I believe, brought forward the principal
of those passages on which Unitarians rely. Is there
anything in any one of them, or in all collectively, to
prevent our reposing supreme confidence in Jesus
Christ ? do they rebuke our absolute dependence upon
him ? do they warn us against loving him with every
affection of our soul ?

The Scriptures, adduced in the last two chapters,
brought before us one of such Divine perfections, that,
if he were not God, not the object of supreme reliance,
we should at least have needed a caveat every few
lines Art thou tempted to worship him ? See thou
do it not. Though the instrument, he is not the
author of eternal salvation. Though God-like, he is
not God. Though wearing vice-regal honours, he is
not king. Be on your guard. Control your feelings.
Curb your affections. Moderate your admiration.
Keep your trust in check. He is only a creature after
all. Beware of idolatry ; and again I say, beware.
Now I ask, do the passages, affirming his subordination
as man, contain that caveat or anything like such
a warning ? or any, even the faintest, intimation of
the possibility of loving him too much, or trusting in
him too entirely? You must confess they do not.
Yea more, as you stoop down and look into these
mysteries of his humiliation, they touch deeper and
deeper springs within you, they awaken the finer
sensibilities of your nature; and when you believe that
he, who was in the form of God, emptied himself for

F 2

100 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

you, and took upon him the form of a servant, con
fidence and affection alike reach a standard that no
thing can transcend. You trust him, you love him,
you adore him supremely^ for that exceeding great
and costly love wherewith he loved you, and gave him-
Gai. a. 20. self for you.

And now every generous feeling within you brands
it as the basest ingratitude to allege these proofs of his
humanity in disproof of his Deity, to trample on his
lowliness that you may pluck the diadem from his
brow, and to find cause in the true sympathy of him
who was in all points tempted like as we are, and
touched with the feeling of our infirmities, for denying
the excellence of that glory which he had with the
Father before the world was. If a sick and suffering
prisoner in Newgate, nursed, and tended, and taught,
by the philanthrophic Howard, had argued, from the
self-devotion of that noble man spending long hours
in the loathsome cell, that he could not possess a
princely mansion, and a fortune of his own ; and even
if he had reproached that ministering angel, saying,
" You must surely be a wretched convict like myself,"
we might pity his infatuation and pardon his ingrati
tude : but can we forgive ourselves, if we deliberately
select the instances of our Lord s lowest humiliation
and cast them in his teeth, as proving that he never
dwelt from eternity in the light that no man can ap
proach unto, nor inhabited from everlasting that shrine
of unfathomable delights, the bosom of his Father?
Let ILS beware, my friends, and remember the solemn
warning of Jesus, "Whosoever shall fall on this stone
(himself in prostrate humility) shall be broken ; but
on whomsoever it shall fall, (himself returning in
statt. x*i. 44. glory,) it will grind him to powder."

THE ROCK OF AGES. 101

CHAP. V.

(4) The "Word was made flesh. Oh wondrous hu
miliation of the Creator ! But this is not all. " He
came," and " as many as received him, to them gave he
power to become the sons of God." Oh wondrous ex- John i. n, n
altation of us his creatures ! They are two mysteries,
of which the second is only less marvellous than the
first. He, the Infinite One, stooped to the extremity
of woe that he might elevate us to the highest life
which a created being can enjoy the life of God.
And this explains another series of truths, which I
blush for myself and for human nature to confess once
troubled my peace, and is I know at the present mo
ment darkening the faith of many : I mean the ex
alted expressions which Scripture contains of our
privileges in Christ.

What argument, UNBELIEF SUGGESTS, can you draw
from the infinite mutual love of the Father and the
Son, when Jesus say?, " As the Father loved me, so
hacc I loced you " /- johnxr.9.

Or from the infinite knowledge possessed by the Son
of the Father, when he says, " No one knoweth the
Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever tlie Son will
rcceal /tint " ? Matt. . -n.

Or from the Son being the express image of his
person, when it is said, " ice arc changed into the $ai&gt;ie
image from glory to glory " ?

Or from his Divine nature as the Son of God, when
" we are joint heirs with him who is tlie first-born among
many brethren, and are ourselves partakers of a Divine E - TiU - 17

, ,, 9 2 Pet. i. 4.

nature ?

Or from his words, " I and my Father are one,"
when he prays for his people " that they may be one
even as we are one " ? John xvii - "

Or from his own mighty miracles, when he promises

102 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

his faithful disciple, " Greater works than these (of

John liv. 12. mine) s j la ll J le do ?_

Or from his session on the eternal throne, when he
KCV. ui. 21. says, we shall share his throne ?

Or from his saying, " He that hath seen me hath
seen the Father," when he also says, He that heareth
Luke x. is. you heareth me ?

Or from his assurance, " As the Father knoweth me
even so know I the Father," when S. Paul says in the

confidence of faith, " Then shall I know even as also I
i cor. xiii. 12. am known " ?

Or from the infinite comprehension implied in the

words " The Father showeth the Son all things that

himself doeth," when Jesus says, "All things that I have

John xv. is. heard of my Father I have made knoiun unto yoti" ?

Or from the name of Jesus, " The Saviour of the

world, who shall save his people from their sins," when

among the Old Testament saints we find there were
xeh. ix. 27. " saviours, who saved them;" when S. Paul says, "I

became all things to all men, that I might by all means
i cor. ix. 22. save some /" and when S. James avers, " He that con-

vertcth a sinner from the error of his way shall save a
James v. 20. soul from death" ?

Or from the express definition, " The Word was

God," when Christ declares, " He called them gods,
Johns. 35. unto whom the word of God came" ?

Or from the solemn affirmation, " In him dwelleth

all the fulness of the Godhead bodily," when Scripture

records the prayer, " that ye might be filled even to all

Eph. iii. 19. the fultlCSS of God " ?

Oh base unbelief ! Oh hateful suspicion ! If I have
done wrong in giving consistent expression to thoughts,
which have been flung as fiery darts against the shield
of faith, the Lord pardon his servant in this thing.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 103

CHIP, v

But the answer is conclusive, and the suggestion un
answered may rankle in many breasts. I do not now
insist on the exceeding ingratitude of the return to
take advantage of the infinite love of Christ and say,
the believer is advanced to so high a dignity, and is
admitted to such Divine delights, there can surely be
no difference betwixt him and the eternal Son of God ;
but, I ask, what saith the Scripture to this objection
of the glories of Christ, and of his redeemed, being
from time to time described in apparently similar
terms ?

In the first place, most of the attributes and names
of Clirist are never predicated of his people : they are
his own essential prerogatives : they are incommuni
cable. Then if we take up one by one those passages
whose force is thought to be neutralized by the cor
responding privileges of saints, we shall see how, in
each case, the privilege of the believer is derived from
Christ, or from the Father through Christ, (the context
compelling this,) and is limited by the finite capacity
of the creature ; while 1 the supereminent glory of Christ
is either underived, eternal, increate, or, if given, is
expressly given to him in his subordinate character as
Mediator. And, lastly, no pretension of trust in any
saint or saints is founded on the privileges conferred
on him or them in the gospel.

As to the first point, you may easily verify it for
yourself, by referring to chapters iii. and iv. Where
is any saint said to be the only-begotten Son of God,
the First and the Last, from everlasting, the same yes
terday, to-day, and for ever, omnipresent, omniscient,
infinitely good, the Creator and Preserver of all things,
the chief Shepherd of the flock, the one Master and
Lord, the Bridegroom of the bride, Jehovah ? Xo where.
Therefore setting these disputed passages aside for a

104

THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V.

Matt. six. 26.
Mark is. 23.

Matt. v. 4S.

while, even without them the proof remains incontro
vertible.

Secondly, let us examine this alleged similarity
more closely. But to deprecate a hasty conclusion from
a bare resemblance of words, I would remind you,
there are a few instances in Scripture in which the
same phrase denotes a prerogative of the Supreme
Father, and a privilege of his believing child. Thus
we find, " "With God all things are possible." And
again, " All things are possible to him that believeth."
"Would you, because of the sameness of the terms em
ployed, deny the omnipotence of God, or ascribe om
nipotence to the believer ? Again, "Be ye therefore
perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is per
fect." Would you, because of the perfection of the
saint, deny the infinite goodness of the Father; or
because of the absolute perfection of the Father, ascribe
illimitable goodness to the saint? Here, indeed,
" Knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth."
Let us, however, proceed to examine them :

The Father loveth the Son,
and hath given all things unto
his hands. He that believeth
on the Son hath everlasting life.
John iii. 35, 36.

As the Father hath loved me,
so have I loved you : continue
ye in my love. If ye keep my
commandments, ye shall abide
in my love. John xv. 9, 10.

John xv. 5.

In the first quotation, supreme authority is assigned
to Christ, as the heir of all things for his church ;
and the trust of mankind centres on him. In the
second, he is urging his disciples as defectible beings,
by the plea of the infinite fulness of his love towards
them, infinite so far as regarded himself, to abide in
that love, from which without him they would as
suredly fall, " for without me," as he had just said,
" ye can do nothing."

THE ROCK OF AGES. 105

CHiP. V.

And he to whomsoever the
Son will reveal him. Matt. xi.
27.

All things arc delivered unto
me of my Father : and no one
knoweth the Son, but the Father ;
neither knoweth any one the Fa
ther, save the Son.-Jlatt. xi. 27.

The first part is again accompanied by the declaration
of the Son s unlimited inheritance of all things. The
second is qualified by the previous assertion that these
things were revealed to babes, and their finite know
ledge of the Father is granted through the Son, as the
efficient cause.

The express image of his per- Changed into the same image.

son. Hi-It, i. 3.

2 Cor. iii. 15.

Joint heirs with Christ.

The first clause is extracted from that chapter which

so illustriously proves the Godhead of Christ. The

second refers all the transformation to the view " of

the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ," revealed cor. \\\ c,

progressively by the Lord, the Spirit.

Unto which of the angels said | Sous of God.
he at any time, Thou art my
Son, this day have I begotten
thee. 1M. i. 5.

[The first-bom,] among many
brethren. lto/,i. viii. 1 1, 17, 20.

We have here another testimony to Christ, which con
nects itself with all those passages affirming that in a
sense peculiar to himself he is the Son of God ; stand
ing forth as the Son, the only-begotten of the Father, j,,i,,, \. u.
the Son of his love, his own Son, the Son of the living K&lt;&gt;m. \\\\. :;:

Matt. xvi. li!

God, the Son of the Blessed, the Son of the Highest. &gt; : v kxi y ; lil

Luke i. 32.

From a cursory glance into the eighth of Romans, we
see how infinite the difference betwixt that essential
Sonship, and our privileges, as adopted sons, which
are only ours in Christ ; and thus it is, as S. Peter
writes, through the righteousness of our God and Sa
viour, Jesus Christ, through the knowledge of God and
r 3

106 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CH-P. V.

of Jesus our Lord, that we become partakers of a (not
2 Pet. i. 4. the) Divine nature.

I and my Father are one.
John x. 30.

That they may be one, even as
we are one. John xvii. 22.

On the first, hangs the security of the church uni
versal, which is safe, whether held in his hand, or, to
vary the aspect of truth, held in his Father s hand ;
equally safe, for he and his Father are one in essence,
power, operation, and will. From the second, we
learn how intimate is the union of the saints with
each other, and the Lord ; but, unutterably glorious
as are the privileges besought by Christ for his people
in that sublime prayer, they all flow equally from the
Father, and from himself (v. 3) as the one fountain
of eternal life.

The works that I do in my
Father s name bear witness of

Greater works than these shall,
he do. John xiv. 12.

me. John x. 25.

In the former, the works are appealed to as proof of
his right to be the Shepherd of his flock, and the Mes
siah of Israel. In. the latter, all the miracles, as he
had just stated, are wrought by faith in him: " he that
believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also."

To the Son he saith, Thy
throne, God, is for ever and
ever. Heb. i. 8.

To him that overcometh will
I grant to sit with me in my
throne. Rev. iii. 21.

It only needs the collation of the verses, to see the
immeasurable difference betwixt the universal su
premacy belonging of right to Christ for ever, and
the favour granted by him to his people of reigning
with him.

He that hatn seen me hath He that heareth you heareth
seen the Father. John xiv. 9. me. Luke x. 16.

The first explains how knowledge of himself embraces
knowledge of the Father, and vindicates his claim to
be " the way, and the truth, and the life." The second

THE ROCK OF AGES. 107

CHAP. V

clothes his messengers with an ambassador s official
authority, as speaking in loco regis.

As the Father kuoweth me,
even so know I the Father.
John x. 15.

Then shall I know even as
also I am known. 1 Cor. xiii.
12.

The good Shepherd, who is to know thoroughly all

his sheep, needs omniscience ; this, the first proves. John x. it.

From the second, we are assured that in heaven our

knowledge will be not fragmentary as here, but, so far

an it extends, will resemble Christ s knowledge of us.

being perfect, symmetrical, unperplcxed.

The Father showeth the Son
all things that himself doetli.
John v. 20.

All things that I have heard of
my Father, I have made known
unto you. John, xv. 15.

The first is accompanied (see p. 74) with every Divine
claim. The second is qualified by the quickly suc
ceeding assurance, " I have yet many things to say
unto you, but ye cannot bear them now." John xvi. i*.

Christ, the Saviour of the
world. JO/^M iv. \-l.

Jesus, who delivered us from
the wrath to come. 1 Tin **.
\. 10.

Thou travcst thorn saviours,
who saved them. -\W/. ix. 27.

lie that converteth a sinner
. . . . shall save a soul from
death. Jitnicts v. 20.

It needs only a glance at the parallel passages, (pages
35, 36,) to sec how infinite is the difference betwixt
him who stands forth emphatically the Author of eter
nal salvation, and those who were deliverers of their
country from oppression, or were instruments as the
ministers of Jesus Christ in the salvation of souls.

He called them gods, to whom

The "Word was God.. John

i. 1.

the word of God came. John

x. 35.

In the first, the context compels us to understand
(Oeo j) God, when applied to the "Word, in the same
sense as when immediately before and after applied to
the Father : the Word is essentially God, the Creator
of all. The second, conceding indeed that there is a

108 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP V.

lower sense in which men were sometimes officially
called gods, (though the passage adduced marks their
Psa.ixxxii. e, 7. mortality they shortly die like other men,) contrasts
with this the Divine Sonship of the Messiah.

That ye might be filled even

to all (ti c vdv) the fulness of
God. Eph. iii. 19.

In him dwelleth all the ful
ness of the Godhead bodily.
Col. ii. 9.

The first affirms the incarnate Godhead of Christ as
the One in whom (see next clause, v. 10) we are com
plete, for he is the head of all principality and power.
The second (somewhat obscured by the received trans
lation) imports that we may be filled each in our
degree and to the utmost bound of our finite capacity,
even as God is full, with Divine goodness : and this
again flows from our knowledge of the illimitable love
of Christ.

The difficulties, when fairly tried by the context in
each case, crumble into dust ; and the formidable line
of objections founded on them melt, like embankments
of snow, when exposed to the full light of other Scrip
tures which assert the true Godhead of the Son.

But now, I ask, do these contrasted truths divert us
from reposing supreme trust in Jesus Christ ? Do
they, even so far as this, confuse our confidence, by
setting up any other as the recipient of equal honour ?
Because the saints are loved with Divine love, know
God, are changed into his image, are called his sons,
are made one with the Father and with Christ, work
mighty works by his power, are raised to Christ s
throne, shall hereafter possess a perfect knowledge, are
made acquainted with the mysteries of gospel grace,
may even officially be called gods, and, what is afar
higher privilege, be filled with all Divine goodness,
is any claim set up on their behalf for trust or wor
ship ? Gather together all the privileges of Christians

THE ROCK OF AGES. 109

CHAP. V

here set forth ; entwine them into one radiant crown ;
place that crown, as you are perfectly warranted in
doing, upon the head of some eminent saint, Peter, or
Paul, or John, or even of the church catholic, the
Bride, is there in all these lustrous glories any tempt
ation held out to confide in absolutely, or supremely to
love, that saint, or that church ?

We acknowledge the extremity of abasement to
which Jesus descended. We believe the summit of
glory to which he will raise his people. We accept
the simple declarations of Scripture with regard to
both these facts. But for a man to take his stand
alternately on the lowest step of Christ s humiliation,
and on the highest step of his children s exaltation,
and thence to deny the Supreme Deity of him who
stooped so low that he might draw us up so high,
seems an ingratitude of which our dealings with our
fellow-men afford no parallel.

We referred before to the opening of the Epistle to
the Ephesians Scripture does not contain a more rich see i&gt;. 28.
exhibition of those things which are ours in Christ.
Now if S. Paul had closed that chapter by arrogating
Christ-like honours or Christ-like homage to himself
and his brethren, there would have been some ground
for alarm that the dignities of his people were eclipsing
the supremacy of their Lord. How different is the
spirit breathed through his glowing prayer !

" That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of
glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation
in the knowledge of him ; the eyes of your understanding
being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of
his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance
in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of his
power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of
his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ, when he raised

110 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. V,

him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the
heavenly places, far above all principality, and powei, and
might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only
in this world, but also in that which is to come ; and hath put
all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all
tilings to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that
K P h. i. 17-23. filleth all in all."

Behold, the Son is on the everlasting throne : and
we are under his feet. Moved indeed by Divine com
passion, he once forsook that throne, and came forth
from the bosom of his Father, that he might gather
together the children of God which are scattered
abroad, and present them as one family before the
presence of his glory with exceeding joy. Is your
trust weakened in him because of his exceeding hu
miliation ? or do you think the less of him for the
glory to which he elevates his people ? Nay, verily :
gratitude can find no words to express itself when we
believe on him who, being over all, God blessed for
ever, partook of our flesh and blood, and now seated
far above all principality and power, is not ashamed to
Heb. ii. ii. call us brethren.

CHAPTER VI.

-CHAP. vi. AND now I would state my next proposition, and
briefly sketch the testimony on which it rests.

That Scripture, in the Old and the New Testament
alike, proves the coequal Godhead of the Holy Spirit
with that of the Father and of the Son.

May the same Spirit grant us reverence, and hu
mility, and godly fear in this solemn inquiry.

THE ROCK OF AGES. Ill

CHAP. VI.

The reader will not fail to observe what strong col
lateral evidence of the possible plurality in unity, and
therefore of the possible coequal Deity of the Father
and of the Son, we shall obtain, if another be revealed
in Scripture ;

as one who is to be distinguished from the Father
and the Son ;

as one to whom such personal properties and actions
are assigned as prove independent and intelligent
personality ;

as one to whom Divine attributes are ascribed, and
by whom Divine offices are exercised ;

as one worshipped in parity with the Father and
the Son ;

as one declared to be Jehovah and God.
Here, indeed, we might expect the evidence to be more
subjective ; for the peculiar office of the Holy Ghost in
the economy of redemption, is ever represented as the
quickening and fostering of the hidden life within. It
is, however, none the less conclusive. If, as we gaze
on the sun shining in the firmament, we see any faint
adumbration of the doctrine of the Trinity in the
fontal orb, the light ever generated, and the heat pro
ceeding from the sun and its beams three-fold and
yet one, the sun, its light, and its heat that luminous
globe, and the radiance ever flowing from it, are both
evident to the eye ; but the vital warmth is felt, not
seen, and is only manifested in the life it transfuses
through creation. The proof of its real existence is
self- demonst rat in g.

(1) That the Divine Spirit is to be distinguished
from the Father and the Son, appears from all those
passages in Holy Scripture, which reveal to us the
simultaneous co-operation of three infinite agents.

112 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VI.

Thus when we read, at our Lord s baptism, of the
voice of the Father, of the human presence of Jesus,
of the visible descent of the Spirit, for " the heaven
was opened, and the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily
shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from
heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son : in thee

Lukeiii.21, I am well pleased:" we are compelled to say, that
the descending Spirit is distinct from, the baptized
Saviour, and from the approving Father.

And when Jesus says, " I will pray the Father, and
he shall give you another Comforter, that he may

John xiv. iG. abide with you for ever ; " and when, this promise
being fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, we find that
the Holy Ghost appeared seated on the disciples as

Acts ii. s. cloven tongues of fire ; we are constrained to acknow
ledge that the apparent Spirit is distinct from the me
diating Saviour, and the Father who decreed the gift.
And when we read of " the name of the Father, and

Matt, xxviu. 19. of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost," and again of " the
grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,

2 cor. xui. 14. and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit," it is impossible
to deny the necessary distinction here affirmed.

And when the saints are described as " elect accord
ing to the fore-knowledge of God the Father, through
sanctificatioii of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprin-

ii et.i.2. kling of the blood of Jesus Christ," Scripture leads us
to conclude that as the bleeding Saviour is distinct
from the predestinating Father, so the sanctifying
Spirit is himself distinct.

And when the benediction of grace and peace is
implored from (airo) him which is, and which was, and
which is to come ; and from (KOL a-no) " the seven

Rev. i. 4, 5. spirits which are before the throne ; a and from (KCU airo)

m The phrase is emblematical, but not the less definitive and
precise when compared with other Scriptures. Indeed, emblems

THE ROCK OF AGES. 113

CHAP. VI.

Jesus Christ, the faithful witness," we are assured that
as there is a distinction intended between the eternal

are a kind of universal language for every age and country. After
all that has been written on this subject, I feel persuaded that
the word is here its own plain interpreter. The principal passages
bearing on this are

(1) " The Spirit of Jehovah shall rest upon him ; the spirit of wis
dom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit
of knowledge aud of the fear of Jehovah, and shall make him of

quick understanding in the fear of Jehovah." I do not think any i sa i. xi. :, s.
stress can be laid on the number here, as the Hebrew only enu
merates six, repeating the last with a preposition (Though the
Septuagint distinguish seven, -Kviv^a aofyiaq, aw tatus, f3ov\fjc;,
( (r^vof, yvu xrtuic;, tvfftfitiac, adding as the seventh, irvivpa
qopov Qioii) but on the multiplicity of perfections designated by
various names and comprised in one, the Spirit of Jehovah.

(2) " Upon one stone shall be seven eyes." Zecii. m. n.
"Those seven ; they are the eyes of Jehovah, which run to and

fro through the whole earth." The Septuagint translate the zeeh. i\. 10.
seven in the same clause with the eyes, tVra OVTOI o00a\/zoi ilmr
ol tTrip\~ov~i t~i Tratrav Tt}v yi}v.

(3) " Aud from the seven Spirits -which are before his throne." it

(4) " These things saith lie that hath the seven Spirits of God." it

(5) " And seven lamps of fire, burning before the throne, which

are the seven Spirits of God. Rev. i\.

(6) " In the midst of the throne aud of the four living creatures,
and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain,
having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of

God scut forth into all the earth " (o00aX/ioi , i-rrrd o i tlai ra R e \-. \:
iirru. TOV Qiov irviv^iara ra aTrtaraXfuva tit; iravav Tt)v yijv}. No
one can fail remarking the designed coincidence betwixt this and
the Septuagiut version, given above, of Zech. iv. 10.
Here we learn,

from (3) and (5) the distinction to be observed between God
and the seven Spirits for they are said to be before the
throne. Therefore you could not identify them with the
Father or the Lamb.

from (2) and (4) and (6) ike mysterious union betwixt God
and them for they arc called the eyes of Jehovah; the
spirits whom the Sou of man hath the eyes of the Lamb.

114 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VI.

Father and the Lord Jesus, so is there likewise betwixt
them and the seven-fold Spirit of God.

In this stage of our inquiry it will be enough to
ask ourselves, In the cases cited above, was the co
operating Spirit identical with the Father or with the
Son ? Could you say it was the Father or the Son
who descended on Christ at his baptism, or on the
apostles at Pentecost ? Could you assert that we are
baptized into the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of one who likewise is the Father, or the Son ?
Or that grace and peace are besought from the eternal
Father, and from one who under another name is also
the Father, and from Jesus Christ ? No one could
maintain this for a moment. The Holy Ghost, there
fore, cannot be identified or confounded either with
the eternal Father, or with his Son Jesus Christ our
Lord.

(2) I proceed, then, to consider, that such personal
properties and actions are ascribed to the Spirit as
prove independent and intelligent personality.

But, it is asked, do we not read of the Spirit of God

from (3) again, that they denote a willing intelligence and
not an abstract power for to imagine that S. John prays
to seven abstractions in parity with the Father and the
Son for grace and peace is inconceivable.
That they cannot be angels is manifest, for the worshipping of
Col. ii. is. angels is expressly forbidden.

Comparing, therefore, the other passages with (1) remember
ing how Jesus Christ says that the Scripture, " The Spirit of the
Lukciv.ii. Lord God is upon me" was fulfilled in himself and knowing
that in the Oriental style the perfection of any quality is ex
pressed by the number seven, we may fairly conclude this ex
pression represents to us this heavenly Agent, the Holy Ghost,
in his own original and infinite perfection, in the consummate wis-
Pye smith. dom of his operations, and in the gracious munificence of his gifts.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 115

CHAP. VI.

being poured out, and given in greater or less de
gree ? If he were a Person, how could he be thus
effused or divided ? Here we fully admit that the
terms spirit and holy spirit, do sometimes denote
not the person, but the operations, the gifts, the in
fluences of the Holy Ghost : as, for example, when it
is said, " I will take of the spirit which is upon thee." Numbers xi. 3
But the question is not whether some passages may
not be brought forward which denote the operations
and influences of the Spirit, and therefore do not estab
lish the point ; but whether besides these there are not
very numerous portions of Scripture which do posi
tively and unanswerably establish his personality.
Just as if I were studying a work on horticulture,
and because the writer here and there used the term
sim to denote the influences of the sun, directing
me to place certain plants in the sun, or that more
or less sun should be admitted, I were to contend,
that the author could not believe there was actually
such a globe of light in the heavens, although in many
other parts he had spoken in strictly astronomical
language of our planetary system. You would justly
assure me, that the occasional recurrence of such fa
miliar phrases as more or less sun, etc. was no valid
argument against his conviction of the sun s real ex
istence, stated elsewhere in the volume plainly and
positively. 2u&gt;w, we admit, that by the spirit, are
sometimes intended the gifts and graces of the Spirit.
These graces may be poured out these gifts dis
tributed. But " all these worketh that one and the
self-same Spirit, dividing to every man severally as
he will." b icorsii.ii.

b The substance of the above paragraph is taken from a valuable
sermon of the Rev. J. E. Bates, On the Holy Spirit.

116 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VI

Now if, altogether apart from this investigation, you
had been asked to name those qualities which evidence
personal existence, you would have been quite content
to answer : Show me that which has mind, and affec
tion, and will, which can act, and speak, and direct ;
and that sentient, loving, determining agent, speaker,
and ruler, must possess personality, or personality can
not exist.

But we read in Scripture of
The mind of the Spirit. " He that searcheth the
hearts knoweth what is the mind (or intention) of the
Kom.viii.27. Spirit, because he maketh intercession."

The infinite comprehension of the Spirit. " The
i cor. ii. 11. things of God knoweth no one, but the Spirit of God."
See next section, where this passage is referred to more
at length.

The fore-knowledge of the Spirit. " He will show
Johnxvi. is. you things to come."

The poiccr of the Spirit. " That ye may abound in
liom.xv. is. hope through the power of the Holy Ghost." If the
Spirit were a metonymy for the power of God, this
would be a most unlikely combination.

The love of the Spirit. " I beseech you for the love

Rom. xv. so. of the Spirit" (ot,a rijs dyaTTTjs TOV Ylvev^aros) : a plea

exactly corresponding with one he had used shortly

Rom. xu. i. before. " I beseech you, by the mercies of God " (bia

Tutv olKTip^Siv TOV eoC).

The self-determining will of the Spirit. " Dividing
i cor. xii. n. to every man severally as he will."

We find

Jle creates and gives life. " The Spirit of God hath

made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given

jobxxxui.4. me life." And again, " By the word of the Lord were

the heavens made ; and all the host of them by the

rta. xxxifi. G. breath (Spirit) of his mouth."

THE ROCK OF AGES. 117

CHAP. VI.

He strives with the ungodly. " My Spirit shall not
always strive with man." Gen.vi.3.

lie convinces of sin, righteousness, and judgment. John.*.

He new-creates the soul. " Born of the Spirit." Johnm.5-s.

He commands and forbids. " The Spirit said to
Philip, " Go near. The Spirit bade me go with them. Acts v-ui. 20.
The Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Acts x ui. 2.
Saul. Being forbidden by the Holy Ghost to preach. Acts xvi. c, :.
The Spirit suffered them not."

He appoints ministers in the church. "The flock
over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers." Acts xx. 2*.

He inspired the sacred writers. " Holy men spake
as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." 2 Pet. i. 21.

He speaketh expressly of events " in the latter times." i Tim. h. i.

He saith to the churches the messages of the Son of
man. Rev. a. 7, etc.

lie performs miracles. " Then the Spirit took me up,
and I heard behind me a voice The Spirit lifted me Ezek. m. 12.
up, between the earth and the heaven. The Spirit Ezek. via. s.
gave them utterance [at Pentecost]. The Spirit of the Actsii. i.
Lord caught away Philip. Mighty signs and wonders Acts vu;. :;.&gt;.
(were done) by the power of the Spirit of God." Kom. \v. i.

He caused the virgin Mary to conceive. Lukei. sr.

He works in all saints, dispensing divers gifts with
independent spontaneity of choice. i cor. xii. t-

Hc regenerates and seals his people, for we are saved
by his renewing ; and are " sealed unto the day of TH. m. n.
redemption" by the Holy Spirit of God. Epb. u-. so.

He intercedes for ^^s in prayers, for he " helpeth our
infirmities .... and maketh intercession for us." Rom - viii - - 6 -

He teaches and comforts and guides us into all truth.
For Christ promises, "The Comforter, which is the
Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name,
He (e/ceiros) shall teach you all things shall testify j hn *iv. 20.
of me shall guide you into all truth shall glorify

118 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VI.

John xvi. is, me and shall take of mine, and show it unto you."

He can be vexed and grieved. " They returned and

isai. ixiii. 10. A^exed his Holy Spirit." " Grieve not the Holy Spirit

Knh. iv. 30. of God."

He is designated by the use of masculine pronouns,

though the noun itself, Spirit, is neuter. " When he,

the Spirit (fKtivos, TO ITyeS/ia) of truth, is come, he will

joim xvi. is. guide you," and so continually in this context, where

it might be rendered " That person the Spirit." Thus,

likewise : " That Holy Spirit of promise, who (6 s) is

EI.U. i. u. the earnest of our inheritance."

He testifies with personal tvitnesscs. " He shall
joim xv. 20, 27. testify (/zapTDp?/(rei), and ye also testify (/zaprvpeire)."
" We are his witnesses of these things ; and so is
Acts v. 32. also the Holy Ghost."

He approves with personal counsellors. " It seemed
Acts x\. 28. good to the Holy Ghost, and to us."

He invites iritli personal messengers. " The Spirit
Rev. xxu. n. and the bride say, Come."

He is personalty present in a sense in which Jesus is
personally absent. " It is expedient for you that I go
away ; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not

John xvi. 7. COmC Unto } OU.

He can be personally blasphemed (as Christ may be
personally blasphemed), but only upon peril of eternal
condemnation. " Whosoever speaketh a word against
the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him ; but whosoever
speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be for
given him, neither in this world, neither in the world

Matt. xii. 32. to COme."

Gai. iv.e. He cries in our hearts, " Abba, Father."

He repeats the beatitude pronounced on those icho
sleep in Jesus. " Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may

Rev. xiv. rest from their labours."

Surely, from a calm and comprehensive study of this

THE ROCK OF AGES. 119

CHVP. VI.

testimony, we must conclude that if these qualities
and actions do not prove personality, there are none,
however explicit and exact, which can do so. Unita
rians are wont to speak of the Spirit, as an effusion or
emanation separate from God, or an influence or power
exercised by God. Can you speak of the mind of an
effusion ? of an emanation, knowing the depths of
him from whom it distils ? of an influence, or power,
or aught impersonal, revealing future events ; pos
sessing a power, and love, and will of its own ; cre
ating, striving, convincing, recreating ; enjoining,
prohibiting, commissioning ; inspiring, speaking ex
pressly, addressing the church ; performing miracles,
transporting, giving utterance ; energizing, regenerat
ing, scaling ; interceding, teaching, comforting, guid
ing ; being vexed and grieved ; testifying, approving,
inviting ; being present as a personal Comforter who
mav be personally blasphemed, crving in us until he cr. c.ai. iv. c ;

" i T, i . i Horn. viii. 1.".

teaches us to cry, Abba, rather, and repeating on earth
the heaven-sent benediction on departed saints ? If in
some few instances you might thus personify an influ
ence, most of those adduced, taken singly, resist such
an interpretation ; and taken collectively, would, if
thus understood, confuse all the laws of language, and
thus derange the first principles of truth.

It is not easy to translate into our own tongue the
proof we obtain from a study of the original here. But
suppose in a volume of history you met with the fol
lowing passage : The prince having left this province
thought good that his Majesty s power shoidd occupy
his room : as for this power, he knew the secret coun
sels of the king ; he had an independent will ; he
strove with the ill-affected, and was grieved and vexed
with the obstinacy of some, while others he convinced
of their infatuation, and was enabled to train as good

THE ROCK OF AGEh.
CHAP. VI.

citi/ens ; lie consoled the well-disposed ; lie issued
commands and restrictions at his own pleasure ; he
appointed subordinate officers ; he spoke expressly of
the certain issue of some incipient plots ; he accom
plished prodigies of benevolence : indeed such was the
authority of this power, that whoever wilfully insidted
him was by the king s command imprisoned for life ;
while on the other hand, he was accustomed to repeat
assurances, which came direct from court, of the favour
awarded there to faithful subjects. Would you, could
you doubt for a moment whether or not this power
was a personal intelligent agent ? And if, a few
pages further on in the book, you read, And thus his
Majesty s power was extended and his dominion con
solidated, would you because of the repetition of the
tcrmpoiccr, or his Majesty s power, confuse the latter
abstraction with the former person would you gainsay
your previous unhesitating conclusion, that the power
left in that province was a living person ? It is impos
sible. You would say, honest language, though capable
of metaphor, is incapable of such delusive impersona
tions. So likewise the witness of Scripture, which we
have heard, is unequivocal that the Holy Spirit is a liv
ing Agent working with consciousness, will, and love.

(3) Now to this agent Divine attributes are ascribed,
and by him Divine offices are exercised towards us.

He is eternal. " Christ through the eternal (alaviov]
Hei&gt;. ix. 14. Spirit offered himself." This is the same word which
is used of the self- existence from everlasting to ever-
Rom. xvi. 26. lasting of Jehovah.

He is omnipresent. " "Whither shall I go from thy

Spirit ? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence ?

Psa. cxxjux. If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there." Having

proved his distinct personality, this establishes his om-

THE ROCK OF AGES. 121

CHAP. VI.

nipresence : which truth is indeed self-evident, from
the simultaneous work he is carrying on in ten thou
sand thousand hearts throughout the universe.

He is omniscient. For he alone, with the infinite
Son, comprehends the incomprehensible Jehovah.
" God hath revealed them to us by his Spirit : for
the Spirit searcheth all things, even the deep things of
God. For what man knoweth the things of man,
save the spirit of man which is in him ? Even so, the
things of God kuoweth no one but the Spirit of God." icm-. n. \&gt;\ \\.
The word search, as used in Scripture, docs not neces
sarily imply that successive acquisition of knowledge
which belongs to a finite being, for Jehovah says, " I,
the Lord, search the heart." And that the Spirit Jer.sviLio.
here is not a mere quality of Divine nature, as con
sciousness is of the human mind, appears from the
first clause, " God hath revealed them to us by his
Spirit," which clearly implies a personal distinction ;
for it could not be said that a man makes anything
known to others by his consciousness. p. Smith.

TT j* 7 -7 s j. -i Ti Appendix II.

He is prescient ana unveils futurity. " It was re
vealed unto him (Simeon) by the Holy Ghost that he
should not see dcatli before he had seen the Lord s Luke \\. -i&lt;;.
Christ." " He will show you things to come." And Joimxvi. r.
S. John "was in the Spirit" when he was enabled to ne\-. i. io ;
cast his eye across the chart of providence.

He is absolutely free and independent. " The wind
bloweth where it listeth so is every one that is born joim m. s.
of the Spirit." Dividing as he willeth. " Where the i cor. xii. 11.
Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." 2Cor. m. 17.

He is infinitely good and Jioly. "Thou gavest thy
good Spirit to instruct them." " Thv Spirit is good." &lt;*. 20.

J " Psa. cxliii. 10.

He is called in the Old Testament emphatically, the

Holy Spirit of God. He is repeatedly styled by our f^; ^j io&gt;

Lord, the Holy Spirit. And this is his distinctive Luke xi. is.

122 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. Vf.

designation by the apostles throughout the New Test
ament. He is likewise called " the Spirit of truth, and
etc." the Spirit of holiness," as the fountain of verity and

Jolmxiv. 17.

Rom. i. -i. goodness.

He is the Almighty Creator of all things. Here it
may suffice to quote one passage which may well set
the question at rest for ever. " Who hath measured
the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out
heaven with a span, and comprehended the dust of the
earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in
scales, and the hills in a balance ? Who hath directed
the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counsellor hath
taught him ? With whom took he counsel, and who

isai. xi. 12 14. instructed him?" No words could express more
plainly an intelligent Creator, inferior to none, whose
wisdom was his own, whose counsel was underived,
whose omnipotence was inherent. What reflex light
this casts on the simple declaration of Genesis, " The

Gwi.i.2. Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

In his hands are the issues of life and death. " The

job xxxiii. 4. Spirit of God hath made me. Thou sendest forth thy

Psa. civ. so. Spirit : they are created. The grass withereth, the
flower fadeth : because the Spirit of the Lord bloweth

isai. si. 7. upon it : surely the people is grass."

And then, as to the life of. God within us, he is the
author and finisher of it. He begets and quickens the

John ni. 6. soul, once dead in trespasses and sins. He teaches us

Rom. viii. EG. to pray. He dwells in us, as in his temple. He pro-

1 Cor. iii. 16. J J . L L

fiai. v. 22, 23. duces his own celestial fruits. He sheds abroad the
love of God in our hearts. He seals us unto the day

Epii. iv. :;o. of redemption. He works in us, educates us, comforts
us, leads us, and bears witness with our spirit that we

Bom. viii. o are the children of God. He carries on the work of
sanctification, changes us into the Divine image from

2 c\.r. iii. is. glory to glory. And by him, as the One who quick-

THE ROi:K OF AGES. 123

CHAP. VI.

cned Christ our Head, will God quicken our mortal i Pet. ui. is.
bodies at the last day. Rm. via. n.

Now I venture to ask, as I asked respecting the
testimony of Jesus, who can believe these explicit de
clarations of the character and work of the Holy Spirit,
and not repose their whole confidence in him resting
on him with supreme reliance, and loving him with
entire devotion ? Consider, he is eternal, everywhere
present, infinite in wisdom, prescient, absolutely just,
and is perfect in goodness and grace and truth ! Con
sider, further, so close and necessary is our relationship
to him, that he is the Almighty Creator of that world
in which we live ; that he gives us every breath we
draw, and that he suspends that breath when we die.
Consider, the whole work of the spiritual life within
us, from its earliest germ to its latest development, is
his operation. What frail and finite creature, like
man, believing this testimony, could, in the presence
of such an One, refuse to render him adoring trust
and love ? If Scripture forbade these emotions, as due
only to Deity, we should be rent in twain. But does
Scripture forbid them ? Nay, verily. You cannot
find the faintest hint against depending on the Holy
Spirit too absolutely. There is no jealousy of his
claims. The most humble submission to his education
is ever enforced; any violation of reverent regard istph. iv. so.
deprecated with a plaintive earnestness of expostula- i Th.-&gt;s. \-. 19.
tion ; and wilful blasphemy against him is fenced with
the most awful warning in the whole word of God.
Such is the efficacy of his personal presence, that it is
represented as compensating the personal absence of
Jesus. Every affectionate and trustful desire is
awakened in you ; for in the comfort he imparts, as
explained by Christ, is comprised the communication
of every Divine blessing. The claims of no benefactor

G 2

124 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VI.

can transcend those of him who gives us life and light,

emancipating us from the thraldom of sin, and bring
ing us into the freedom of love. Only believe these
Scriptures, and you must, perforce, trust and love this
Divine Spirit supremely. This homage belongs to God
alone, whose name is Jealous, who will not give his
glory to another. Therefore we conclude and confess
that the Holy Ghost is one with God, and is himself
God, himself Jehovah.

(4) This is further established by the fact that the
Spirit of God is revealed in Scripture as the object of
religious worship in parity with the Father and the
Son.

The sixth chapter of Isaiah compared with John xii.
41, has already proved to us that God manifested him
self to the prophet by the express image of his person,
his only begotten Son. The voice which spoke is dis-

isai. vi. s. tiiictly said to be the voice of Jehovah. But the mes
sage then sent is again recorded by S. Paul, and is
prefaced with this remarkable introduction : " Well

Acts xxviii. 25. spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet." The
glory of Jehovah of hosts was then revealed by Jesus
Christ, and the voice of Jehovah was the utterance of
the Holy Ghost. Now we decipher the true signifi
cance of the threefold adoration of the veiled seraphim,

isai. vi. s; "Holy, holy, holy, Lord of hosts," and dimly appre-
ver.s. hend why it was asked, "~VVho will go for us? " The
angels of light, therefore, worship the Holy Spirit with
the Father and the Son.

I would mention in passing, without laying stress
upon it, the impressive vision of Ezekiel, in the valley
of dry bones, in which he is commanded to address
the wind (irvev^a LXX.), " Prophesy unto the wind,
prophesy, Son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith

THE ROCK OF AGES.

125

CHAP. VI.

the Lord God ; Come from the four winds, breath,

and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." The Ezek. xxxvii.9.

wind is evidently typical of the Spirit, for it is said in

the interpretation of the "vision, " I will put my Spirit

in you, and ye shall live : " and to my own mind the vcr. u.

proclamation to the wind is typical of prayer to the

Spirit for his energizing power in quickening dead compare chp.

souls to the life of God. with :;?.

The baptismal formulary, however, affords an unam
biguous testimony. For baptism is a solemn act of
worship, denoting entire consecration to him in whose
name we are baptized. It is the stipulation (e-epwr^a, i ret. . 21.
Greek legal term) of a good conscience toward God.
I^ow the existence of a stipulation implies the presence,
or in some way the knowledge and acceptance, of the
person to whom the engagement is made. It supposes
then, in this case, the presence or cognizance of the
Son and the Spirit equally with that of the Father. Pye Smith.
Here again we have, by our Lord s express command,
adoring homage paid to the Holy Ghost in union with
the Father and himself, at this sacred profession of
every Christian s faith.

I would also ask you to compare

O come, let us worship and
bow down : let us kneel before
the Lord our Maker. For lie is
the Lord our God ; and we are
the people of his pasture, and
the sheep of his hand. To-day,
if ye will hear his voice, harden
not your hearts, as in the provo
cation, and as in the day of
temptation in the wilderness:
when your fathers tempted me,
proved me, and saw my works.
Psa. xcv. 69.

Wherefore, as the Holy Ghost
saith, To-day, if ye will hear his
voice, harden not your hearts,
as in the provocation, in the day
of temptation in the wilderness,
when your fathers tempted me.
Heb. iii. 79.

They vexed his Holy Spirit.
Istti. Ixiii. 10.

Your fathers resisted the Holy
Ghost. Ads vii. 51.

[The context in the last two
shows it refers to the provoca
tion in the wilderness.]

126 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VJ.

We may fairly conclude that the One whom the
psalmist calls upon us to worship is the same One
whom, he says, the Israelites provoked. This One the
parallel passages assure us was eminently the Eternal
Spirit. I say eminently, for I do not think these and
other like Scriptures warrant us in excluding thoughts
of the Father and the Son. While establishing the
personal Godhead of the Spirit, we must not forget his
essential unity with the Father and the Son. To those
who believe this, every simple command worship
God embraces the worship of the Holy Spirit ; but
in the above it was eminently the Spirit. The Spirit
was the One of the sacred Trinity most prominently
tempted and grieved by the Israelites, and therefore
the One most prominently to be supplicated.

c Since the above was written I have found the following
passages in the Life of Thomas Scott the commentator, which
present in a condensed form the arguments for the truth which

1 am here endeavouring to advocate.

" The form of blessing, into the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost, seems to me to recognise God our
Saviour as Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. In this view, when
God is addressed without personal distinction, I consider the ad
dress as made to the God of salvation; and the Holy Spirit in
cluded whether prayer or praise be offered. The trishagion or
threefold ascription of holiness to Jehovah both in the Old and
New Testament, seems an act of worship to the Holy Spirit to
gether with the Father and the Son. The form of blessing ap
pointed by Moses, in this view, implies a prayer to the Holy
Spirit, Numb. vi. 24 27 ; as does the apostolical benediction,

2 Cor. xiii. 14. I have no hesitation in my mind as to the express
act of adoration, in Rev. i. 4, being offered personally to the Holy
Spirit, according to the emblematical language of that book. . . .
If, then, we be fully convinced that the Holy Spirit is God, and
that all Divine perfections and operations, together with every
personal property, are ascribed to him, there can be no doubt but
he is the object of Divine adoration. Where God is addressed

THE ROCK OP AGES. 127

CHAP. VI.

Pray ye, therefore, the Lord of
the harvest that he will thrust
forth labourers into his harvest.
Malt. ix. 38.

The Holy Ghost said, Separate
me Barnabas and Saul for the
work. ... So they, being sent
forth by the Holy Ghost. Acts

xiii. 24.

Here Christ himself enjoins prayer to him, who sends
forth ministers. That this is one special office of the
Holy Ghost, we learn from the Acts ; and we have,
therefore, Christ s warrant for praying to the Spirit.

Again, bearing in mind that " the love of God is
shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost," this Rom. v. r,.
being his peculiar office, I pray you to ponder the
following prayers :

" The Lord make you to increase and abound in love
one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do
toward you : to the end lie may establish your hearts
unblamable in holiness before God, even our Father,
at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thess.
iii. 12, 13.

" The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God,
and into the patient waiting for Christ." 2 Thess.
iii. 5.

In both these supplications we have the Father and
Christ named besides the One to whom the prayer is
addressed ; may we not be assured that this One is
especially the blessed Spirit of love ?

The Book of Revelation seals the testimony. For,
as we have seen, the bestowal of grace and peace is
implored equally from the eternal Father, and from the
seven Spirits which are before his throne, and from
Jesus Christ. This is direct supplication. And lastly, Rev. i. 4, 5.

without distinction of persons, the Holy Spirit is virtually ad
dressed : all that dependence, gratitude, love, and honour, which
are required as due to our God, are required towards the Holy
Spirit ; nnd therefore worship and adoring praise and prayer can-
iiot be improper." Life of Scott, p. 338, 339.

128 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VI.

we have in the fourth and fifth chapters a view,
couched in symbolic but most expressive language, of
the celestial worship. A throne is set in heaven. It
is then a question of absorbing interest who is the
adorable Being, who there concentrates around himself
this homage of saints and angels. So singular and
sublime a revelation must needs draw the closest re
gards of every reverent mind ; for though " the secret
things belong to the Lord our God," the "things which

Deut. Mix. 29. are revealed belong to us and to our children." Is
then the unity of the One there worshipped so simple
an unity as to preclude any plurality subsisting there
in ? The throne was set in heaven, and One sat on
the throne. But is this One alone in infinite solitari
ness ? The Lord enable us to keep our foot as we
draw near to his unutterable glory. What saith the
Scripture ? The voice of the Son of man was only
now silent. " I overcame, and am set down with my

Rev.ui.2i. Father in his throne." (An evident distinction is here
drawn betwixt the throne of Christ, which his people
were admitted to share, and the throne of the Father,
the supreme glories of which the Son alone partakes.)
And in strict accordance with this we find, " Lo, in
the midst of the throne d stood a Lamb as it

KCV. v. e. had been slain : " and the universal worship of heaven

d If any object that, in chap. iv. 6, it is said, "the living crea
tures were in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne,"
I believe the answer is given in the parallel vision of Ezekiel i. 5,
22, 26, where the throne is on the firmament, and the firmament
rests oni lie i &gt; (.1 the living creatures; so that to one ap
proaching the throne they would seem to be around it, though
their bodies were under or " in the midst " of it as a support.
Barnes. That they did not occupy the throne and receive adora
tion is plain ; for (chap. v. 6) the Lamb appears in the midst of
the living creatures, as well as in the midst of the elders ; and
ver. 8, they, with the elders, fall down before him.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 129

CHAP. VI.
is addressed equally " to him that sat on the throne

and unto the Lamb for ever." But is this all ? Have
we now reached the limit of that revealed ? I think
not. The question must press on every reflective stu
dent, what position do the " seven Spirits of God "
hold amid this tide of celestial adoration ? Are they
among the worshippers, or are they worshipped ? In
the benediction of the first chapter they mysteriously
intervene betwixt the Father and the Son, as one of
the blessed Three who are the fountain of grace and
peace. In the third chapter the Son of man describes
himself as having the seven Spirits of God. In the
fourth chapter they appear as seven lamps of fire
burning befoi e the throne. But what when next we
read of them ? " In the midst of the throne, and of
the four living- creatures, and in the midst of the elders,
stood a Lamb as it had been slain, e having seven horns n ev . \-. 6.
and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God
sent forth into all the earth." This implies their
closest union with the Lamb ; therefore, when he, to
gether with the eternal Father, received that wondrous
universal homage, the sevenfold Spirit of God must
have received it with him. How beautiful now ap
pears the harmony with the opening benedictory
prayer ; and how appropriate now the threefold
cherubic adoration, "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Al-

If one passing mention only had been made of them, as of the
seven horns, we might have said these shadowed forth perfect
knowledge, as those perfect power : but the repeated and varied
way, in which they are introduced, prevents our resting in this ab
stract interpretation; and hence the conjunction of the seven
horns in this verse seems equivalent to such expressions as " Jesus
returned in the power of the Spirit (the same personal Spirit who
had descended on him at his baptism, and led him into the wilder- T ukc iv J4
ness) into Galilee:" or, "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with Luke Hi . 22
the Holy Ghost and with power." Acts x! ss.

130 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VI.

Rev.iv. s, mighty, which was, and is, and is to come." The

here only and ... , .. , . ... . . .

in isaiah vi. s. vision is symbolic, but it symbolizes truth ; and it is
most suggestive of the highest adoration being re
ceived on the eternal throne by the Father, and by
the Son, and by the Holy Ghost.

Divine worship is, therefore, on the authority of
Scripture, rendered to the Spirit. I admit that in
some of the cases the evidence is rather circumstantial
than direct. But this we should have a priori ex
pected ; for in the economy of redemption it is the
office of the Holy Ghost to kindle in us " the spirit of
zechxii. io. grace and of supplications," to intercede for us and
Bom. viii. 15, with us, and to enable us, in the spirit of adoption, to
pray as Jesus taught his disciples, " Our Father which
art in heaven."

(5) Finally, the comparison of Scripture with Scrip
ture demonstrates that the Divine Spirit f is JehovaK

Cf. Serle and and God.
Jones.

And the Lord said, My Spirit
shall not always strive with man.
Gen. vi. 3.

The long-suffering of God
waited in the days of Noah.
1 Pet. iii. 20.

It was then the forbearance of God the Spirit with
which thev before the flood contended.

They vexed his Holy Spirit. . .
Where is he that put his Holy
Spirit within him ? . . . that led
them through the deep. . . . The
Spirit of Jehovah caused him

Jehovah said to Moses, How
long will this people provoke
me ? Numb. xiv. 11.

Jehovah alone did lead him.
Deut. xxxii. 12

to rest. Isai. Ixiii. 10 14. i

Compare also the parallel passages (p. 125). Here we
learn that the One provoked was the Holy Spirit, and
was Jehovah. Therefore the Spirit is Jehovah.

f This appellative is not modern. Thrice, at least, is the He
brew Spirit of God rendered by the LXX. Uvtv^a Otlov. ExoA.
xxxi. 3 ; Job xxvii. 3 ; xxxiii. 4.

THE ROCK OF AGES.

131

The God of Israel said, the
Rock of Israel spake to me. 2
Sam. xxiii. 3.

P. VI.

The Spirit of the Lord spake
by me ; and his word was in my
tongue. 2 Sam. xxiii. 2.

Therefore, unless you admit that there were three, or
at least two, Divine speakers who inspired David, the
Spirit of Jehovah is the God and the Rock of Israel.

Well spake the Holy Ghost
by Esaias the prophet. Acts
xxviii. 25.

Holy men of God spake as
they were moved by the Holy
Ghost. 2 Pet. i. 21.

The Lord God of Israel

spake by the month of his holy
prophets, which have been since
the world began.-7^e i. 68-70.

All Scripture is given by in
spiration of God. 2 Tim. iii.
16.

The Spirit, therefore, is God, yea, the Lord God of
Israel. I append a few other passages, (selected from
many,) the conclusion from which is similarly self-
evident.

That which is bora of the
Spirit (TO yiyivvrjufvov tK TOV
nvtvparoc). Jo/t/i iii. G.

Christ wrought by me, through
mighty signs and wonders by the
power of the Holy Ghost. lioni.
xv. 19.

The Comforter (6 HapaicXqroc)
which is the Holy Ghost. John
xiv. 20.

"Walking . . in the comfort of
the Holy Ghost. Ads ix. 31.

Why hath Satan iiilcd thine
heart to lie to the Holy Ghost ?
Acts v. 3.

How is it that ye have agreed
to tempt the Spirit of the Lord ?
Acts v. 9.

Your body is the temple of the
Holy Ghost. 1 Cor. vi. 19.

The Spirit of God dwelleth in
you. 1 Cur. iii. 16.

These passages might be greatly multiplied; but
from this comparison, observing the way in which the

That which is born of God
(TO yiytvvrmi.vov tK Toil Qiov.)
1 John v. 4.

Jehovah, . . . the Lord of
lords . . . the God of gods, . . .
alone docth great wonders.
Psa. cxxxvi. 1 4.

I, even I, am he that com-
forteth (6 TrapaKaXwv Z.Y.V.)
you. I sat. li. 12.

The God of all comfort, who
comforteth us. 2 Cor. i. 3, 4.

Thou hast not lied unto men,
but unto God. Acts v. 4.

Thou shalt not tempt the Lord
thy God. Matt. iv. 7.

Ye are the temple of the living
God ; as God hath said, I will
dwell in them. 2 Cor. vi. 16.

132 THE HOCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VI.

names and offices of God and of the Holy Spirit are
interchanged, we conclude that this same Eternal
Spirit is Jehovah, the God of Israel, the Lord God, the
Lord of lords, the God of gods, the living God, the
Divine Being who quickens and comforts in one
word, he is God. s Once more, S. Paul affirms, " We
are changed into the same image, AS BY THE LORD
2 Cor. ill. is. THE SPIRIT " (KdOairep a~b Kvpiov 7rvfvp.aTO^. The
Greek should, doubtless, be thus rendered : for con
struction, compare Gal. i. 3 (a-rrb 0eou mirpo s). He
thus places the word LORD, which he had used, ver.
16, to designate Jehovah, in direct and immediate ap
position with SPIRIT. The whole context, which so
beautifully illustrates the threefold work of the Holy
Trinity in the believer s soul, proves, at the same
time, that the Holy Ghost is one with the Father
and the Son, very and Eternal God.

If any object that he is said to be sent by the Father
and the Son, and that this mission implies inferiority,
we answer that, even among men, the being sent is by
no means always a mark of subordination. The mem
bers of a senate consult together relative to some nego-

e I might here add two remarks :

(1) The Godhead of Christ being proved, the very fact of the
Holy Spirit anointing this infinite Saviour for all the work of re
demption proves his own Divine infinitude ; for who but God
could empower God ?

(2) As in the Old Testament we find Christ as the Angel of
God s presence saying, " I am the God of thy father, I will send

Kxod. Ui. 2, 6, thee ; " thus claiming supreme authority ; and as from thence we
may securely infer the Deity of this glorious leader ; so in the New
Testament, when we find the Spirit said to Peter, " Arise, go, for

Acts x. 19, 20. I have sent them," thus, in his own right, setting aside the ceremo
nial law, we may safely argue, This is a Divine person, who, in the
absence of the Son of God, according to his promise, acts in his
place and governs his church.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 133

CHAP. VI.

tiation, in executing which great wisdom, judgment,
and experience are required. It is resolved to send
one of their number. Is it any mark of inferiority to
be selected, and sent on such a service ? And the
mission of the Comforter is spoken of regarding the
office he has undertaken in the economy of grace the
work of sanctifying the elect people of God a work
which none less than God can effect, and the glorious
accomplishment of which will redound to his praise
through the countless ages of eternity. Bates.

If, again, any ask why the ambiguity inseparable
from the name Spirit of God, when compared with the
phrase spirit of a man an ambiguity which, unless ex
plained, would have tended to conceal his personality
was permitted ? I would suggest that his name is
no arbitrary choice ; that it is the only one which
would reveal to us the distinctive character of this
holy Being, as the name the Son could alone describe
the Eternal "Word ; and that the very similarity of de
signation may be needful to express his fellowship with
us, his spiritual in-dwelling, and the high communion
carried on, while the Spirit itself bears witness with
our spirit that we are the children of God. This R 0m . \\\\. IB.
similarity testifies to us our union with the Divine
Comforter who renews us, as our common humanity
testifies our union with the Divine Saviour who re
deemed us.

And if once more it is asked why he is not more
prominently set forth in Scripture as the object of
adoration, besides the answer given above, there seems
in this, if I may venture so to express myself, a prin
ciple of Divine equipoise in the parts sustained in our
salvation, by the co-equal and co-eternal Three. The
love of the Father, loving us so that he gave his Son
to redeem and his Spirit to sanctify us, shines pre-

134 THE ROCK OF AGES.

HAf. VI.

eminent : it bathes the sacred page with light, and
commands our homage, and compels our love. The
grace of the Lord Jesus, for us incarnate, for us cruci
fied, for us interceding, absorbs every thought, and
attracts every affection : and a large portion of Scrip
ture is taken up with sotting forth the eternal Godhead
of Emmanuel, and requiring us to regard him with
equal love and with equal confidence. Once more, a
third is revealed, the Divine Comforter : the glories of
his Person are beyond doubt affirmed, but they are
only rarely disclosed in full view ; his worship is en
joined, but it is comparatively withdrawn from ob
servation : when, however, we look into the subjective
work carried on by him, there is an amplitude and
plenitude of evidence from Holy Writ, which entirely
compensates any seclusion of his visible majesty. The
variety of his Divine operations in us as far exceeds in
glory, as the brightness of his presence is concealed.
The ministration of the Spirit is as mighty, as his voice
is mysteriously still.

But here, even when we would feel our way with the
utmost reverence, how soon are we beyond our depth !
the waters are risen, waters to swim in, a river that
zek. xivii. 5. cann ot be passed over. Thanks be to God, the neces
sary truth is clear as the light : that the Holy Spirit
is distinct from the Father and the Son ; that such
personal properties are assigned to him as demonstrate
intelligent personality; that all Divine attributes,
such as self- existence from eternity, omnipresence,
infinite wisdom and foreknowledge, absolute freedom
and goodness, creative providential and spiritual power
attributes any one of which would prove his God
head are assigned to him ; that he is associated in
Divine offices with the Father and the Son ; that he
with them is worshipped and glorified; that he is

THE ROCK OF AGES 135

CHAP. VI.

Jehovah and God : these things are written, as with
a sun-beam, in the Scriptures of truth.

But here I would remind myself and my readers
that no evidence, however conclusive, can insure a
saving belief in the Divinity of the Holy Ghost. The
understanding may be convinced, while the heart may
rebel. For the Lord Jesus says to his disciples, " I
will pray the Father, and he shall give you another
Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever ; even
the Spirit of truth ; whom the world cannot receive,
because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him." And Joimxiv. ic,
the apostle Paul, while in conscious integrity he de
clares, "We speak the things freely given to us of
God, "not in the words which man s wisdom tcacheth,
but which the Holy Ghost teacheth ; comparing spirit
ual tilings with spiritual," seems to chasten his hopes icor. a. 12, in.
with the humbling recollection, " the natural man
receivcth not the things of the Spirit of God, . . . neither
can lie know them, because they are spiritually dis- ver.it.
corned." And therefore rather, seeing we have a
High Priest who is touched with the feeling of our
infirmities, let us kneel together at the throne of grace,
and plead in prayer his own royal promise, " If ye,
then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your
children, how much more shall your heavenly Father
give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him ! " that we Luke xi. is.
all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of
the Lord, may be changed into the same image from
glory to glory, a? by the Lord the Spirit. 8Cor.iH.is.

CHAPTER VII.

CHAP. vii. AND now I must seek to draw this treatise, which has
extended far beyond the limits I designed, to a conclu
sion. I would therefore state my last proposition in
these words :

That Scripture, in the Old and the Neio Testament
alike, assures us that in the trustful knowledge of One
God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, is
the spiritual life of man now and for ever.

The Lord grant that we may continue to bring to
the study of his word, that humble spirit which prays

Jobxxxiv.32. " That which I see not teach thou me."

(1) To one who receives with meekness the en
grafted word which is able to save our souls, the Scrip
tures already adduced prove beyond contradiction that
as the Father is God, so is Jesus Christ God, and so
the Holy Spirit is God. This truth, however, must be
combined with another, which is revealed with equal
clearness and enforced with equal solemnity : " I am
Jehovah, and there is none else, there is no God beside

isai. xiv. 5. me." The combination of these truths establishes the
doctrine of the Holy Trinity, for these Three must
together subsist in one infinite Divine essence, called
Jehovah or God ; and as this essence must be indi
visible, each of them must possess not a part or portion
of it, but the whole fulness or perfection of the essen
tial Godhead forming, in an unity of nature, One
Eternal Jehovah, and therefore revealed by a plural
noun h as the Jehovah Elohim, which comprehends

h The reader will observe throughout this treatise, that I have
given no prominence to the argument derivable from the plural
form of Elohim, and to the yet more suggestive language used by

THE ROCK OF AGES. 137

CHAP. VII.

these Three ; but with this solemn qualification, that
the Jehovah Elohim is in truth but one Jehovah, a 4

Adapted from

Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

p. 40, 47.

God, " Let us make man in our image, after our likeness," aud Gen. i. 26.
again, "Who will go for us?" But I should be doing injustice isai. vi. ?.
to my own convictions if I did not state, that I believed this lan
guage was intended to foster when kindled, aud to awaken when
dormant, the persuasion that there subsisted a plurality in the
essential unity of Jehovah. Thus far, I think, the following ex
tracts from Dr. P. Smith s essay abundantly bear me out :

" The most usual appellation of the Deity in the original Scrip
tures of the Old Testament is Elohim, which is constantly trans
lated "God;" but it is the regular plural of Eloa/i, which also
occurs, though much less frequently than in the plural form, and
is always translated in the same manner.

" This plural appellative is generally put in agreement witli
singular verbs, pronouns, aud adjectives, as in Gen. i. 1, Eloliim
created ; creacit Dii ; les Dieux erect. This is the ordinary con
struction through the whole Hebrew Bible.

"But sometimes the apposition is made with verbs, pronouns,
and adjectives, in the plural number likewise, and sometimes sin
gulars and plurals are put together in the same agreement: as
Gen. xx. 13, God (plural) caused me to wander cayari me fece-
ri .nt Dii ; leu Dieit.r in ont fait t garer. Deut. v. 26, heard the
voice of the living God (plural) audivit vocera Deorum Vicen-
titiiii ; DCS Dieux vicaiis, etc.

"To these may be added the similar expressions, though with
out the word Elohim :

Psa. cxlix. 2, Israel shall rejoice in his Maker (plural) in Cre-
aforibus suis ; de ses Crateurs.

Isai. liv. 5, For thy Creator (plural) is thy husband (plural).

Eccles. xii. 1, Remember thy Creator (plural).

" The fact which principally requires our attention, is the con
stant use of Elohim, to designate the one and only God. It is not
a little remarkable that, in the sacred books of a people who were
separated from all other nations for this express object, viz. that they
should bear a public and continual protest against polytheism the
ordinary name and style of the only living aud true God should
be in a plural form. Did some strange and insuperable necessity
lie in the way ? "\Yas the language so poor that it could furnish

138 THE HOCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

This supreme mystery must transcend all the powers
of human thought ; and the question nrnst recur again
and again, "What saith the Scripture ? Our imagina
tions must be counted as the small dust of the balance.
Thus, do you conceive that the very names the Fa
ther, the Son imply a certain point in duration beyond
which the Father inhabited eternity alone ? Your
conception cannot countervail the assertion of Scrip
ture, that the goings-forth of the Saviour have been
from everlasting ; or the words of Christ himself,
adopting the formula which declares the Divine self-
existence from eternity to eternity, " I am the first
and the last."

The illustration, before adduced, of the sun, its
beams of light, and its vital heat, may offer some faint
resemblance of this great mystery : for the beams of
light are generated by the central orb ; and yet the
sun could not have existed, so far as we know, for a
moment without emitting its radiance, nor the radi
ance have existed without diffusing 1 its warmth : so

no other term ? Or, if so, could not the wisdom of inspiration
have suggested a new appellative, and for ever abolish the hazard
ous word ? None of these reasons existed. The language was
rich and copious. Besides that glorious and fearful name, Je
hovah, the appropriated and unique style of the true God, there
was the sinyular form Eloali of the very word in question.

" Hear, () Israel, Jehovah, our Elohim, one Jehovah ? This
sentence was proclaimed as a kind of oracular effatum, a solemn
and authoritative principle to the Israelites. Had it been intended
to assert such a unity in the Divine nature, as is absolutely soli
tary, and exclusive of every modification of plurality, would not,
the expression of necessity have been this, Hear, O Israel, Je
hovah, our Elohim, one Eloah? But as the words actually
stand, they appear to be in the most definite and expressive man
ner designed to convey the idea, that, not withstanding a real
plurality intimated in the form Elohim, Jehovah is still ONE."

THE ROCK OF AGES. 139

CHIP. VII.

that " one is not before another, but only in order and
relation to one another." But no creature can ade- Bcverujge on

Art. I.

quately image forth the Creator, who asks " To whom
then will ye liken God ? or what likeness will ye com
pare unto him ? " Isai - * 1S -

Again, do you imagine that the name of him who
is alone Jehovah, cannot comprehend a Trinity in
Unity ? Your imagination is as nothing in contra
diction of the words of Christ revealing the one Di
vine name, as " the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost." Do you asseverate
the impossibility of three subsistences in one eternal
essence ? Remember, I pray you, the words, " Canst
thou find out the Almighty unto perfection ? " What Job \\. -
do we know of the essence of created things ? The
pure white light seems indissolubly one ; an unscien
tific man would, without hesitation, pronounce it uni
form, and would utterly deny any plurality subsisting
in its transparent simplicity. The colours of the
rainbow seem evidently manifold ; and the same man
might refuse to credit their unity. Science stoops to
analyse light ; and we are told that

The prismatic spectrum consists in reality of three spectra of
nearly equal length, each of uniform colour, superposed one
upon another ; and that the colours, which the actual spectrum
exhibits, arise from the mixture of the uniform colours of these
three spectra superposed. The colours of these three elementary
spectra, according to Sir David Brewster, are red, yellow, and
blue. lie shows that by a combination of these three, not only
all the colours exhibited in the prismatic spectrum may be re
produced, but their combination also produces white light. Tie
contends, therefore, that the white light of the sun consists, not L ar( i nc ,.- s
of seven, but of three constituent lights. " S v", ,. 7$.

The unlearned man then, in his incredulity, would
Lave denied an established fact. The unity of that pure

140 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

white light was not so simple as he affirmed. More
constituents than one subsist in its ethereal essence.
But has science now fathomed the mysteries of light ?
So far from it, we read

Light is now proved to consist in the waves of a subtle and
elastic ether, which pervades all space and serves to communicate
every impulse, from one part of the universe to another, with a
speed almost inconceivable. ... In this luminous ether, matter
seems to emulate the subtlety of thought. Invisible, and yet the
only means by wliich all things are made visible ; impalpable,
and yet nourishing all material objects into life and beauty ; so
elastic, that when touched at one point, swift glances of light
tremble through the universe; and still so subtle that the celestial
bodies traverse its depths freely, and even the most vaporous
comet scarcely exhibits a sensible retardation in its course :
there is something in the very nature of this medium which seems
to baffle the powers of human science, and to say to the pride of
human intellect, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further ; and
here shall thy proud waves be stayed. Here, indeed, the most
brilliant and profound analysts have continually to guess their
way when they would trace out a few of the simplest laws result
ing from the existence of such an ether, and unfold their appli
cation to the various phenomena of reflected and refracted light.
It is a great deep of mystery. Science grows dizzy on its verge
when it strives to explore the nature of this subtle, immense,
^Treasures imponderable ocean, which bathes all worlds in light, and itself
Pi^ao-ioc. remains, by its own nature, invisible for ever.

Is such the modest confession of truth after all the
triumphs of human wisdom ? Is man only wading,
with tremulous footstep, into the shallow waters of that
unfathomable sea called into existence by the fiat of
God, when he said, " Let there be light, and there was
light ? " Are we so soon out of our depth in seeking
to understand one of his works ? How much rather
may we expect to be humbled as we meditate, and to
be baffled if we think we can comprehend, the glorious

THE ROCK OF AGES. 141

CHU-. VII.

Creator himself? Is light a mystery? How much
rather he who dwells in the light that no man can ap
proach unto ! We know him only as he reveals himself.

This self-revelation involves a yet greater self-con-
coalment. There will be the manifestation of God in
the voluntary condescension of his love : and there
will be the necessary seclusion within the clouds of his
unapproachable glory. When a finite being seeks to
understand anything of the Infinite, it must always
be so. There will be the fragment of truth which the
student has made and is making his own, and the
illimitable expanse beneath, above, and beyond him.
Thus in the field of nature we read, " The works of
the Lord are great, sought out of all them that hove
pleasure therein." Here is our knowledge. But " No Psa. i. .
man," says Solomon, "can find out the work that God
maketh from the beginning to the end." There is Eede*. in. u
the limit of our knowledge. We are invited to con
sider his heavens, to trace his footprints, and to regard
the operations of his hands. And yet after all, " Lo I
these are parts of his ways ; how faint a whisper is
heard of him ! the thunder of his power who can un
derstand?" So, in the majestic course of his patient Job-wi. i*.
providence we adoringly acknowledge, " Just and true
are thy ways, thou King of saints : " and yet we must Rev. *v. ;,.
confess, " Thy way is in the sea, and thy path in the
great waters, and thy footsteps are not known." r.s&gt;. ixx\- . n

Humble students are treading an upland path.
Their horizon widens every step they take. The
angels of light, standing on a higher eminence, stv
further than they. Still there must be a boundary
line which limits angelic intuition : and whatever lies
beyond that line must be a mystery to them, or, if
made known to them, made known by revelation.
We rebuke the want of modesty in the unlearned

142 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

peasant who argues from his ignorance against the
declarations of science : surely those blessed spirits
would rebuke us, if we, through preconceived notions
of our own, refused to credit the simple revelations of
God regarding his own mysterious Being.

He reveals himself by his names, his attributes, and
his acts. And, therefore, if, combined with assertions
that God is one, we find three revealed in Scripture
to whom the same names, attributes, and acts are as
cribed, the same so far as a personal distinction allows ;
if we look vainly for any fourth Divine one, or any
intimation of more than three ; if we connect with this
the intimate and necessary union affirmed to exist be
twixt the Father, and the Son, and the Spirit, as when
the Lord Jesus says, " I and my Father are one," and
when S. Paul says, " The Spirit searches the depths of
God ; " if, then, we find that every Christian is bap
tized into one Name, the Name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, we are led swiftly
and irresistibly up to the doctrine (call it by what name
you will) of the Trinity in Unity.

(2) Hence, at the risk of apparent repetition, I shall
bring together again some few Bible testimonies to the
Godhead of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost ;
combining them in one view; and adding a further
declaration from Scripture of our sole dependence on
the alone Jehovah ; so that you may see at a glance,
that we are compelled by the Christian verity, to
acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the
Trinity power of the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity.

Sunday.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are eternal
1 . I am the first, and I am the last. Isai. xliv. 6.
The everlasting (aiow ou) God. Rom. xvi. 26.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 143

CHAK VII

2. I am the first and the last. Rev. i. 17. Whose

goings forth have been from of old, from ever
lasting (077 apxys e ijp.epu&gt;i al&vos LXX.)
Micah v. 2.

3. The eternal (alwvtov) Spirit. Heb. ix. 14.

The One Eternal is our trust. The eternal God is
thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.
Deut. xxxiii. 27.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost created all
things.

1. One God, the Father, of whom arc all thing s.

1 Cor. viii. 0. The Lord ... it is he that hath
made us. Psal. c. 3.

2. All tilings were made by him (the Word), etc.

John i. 3. P&gt;y him were all things created, etc.
Col. i. 10.

3. Who hath measured, etc. who liatli directed the

Spirit of the Lord - Isai. xl. 13. The Spirit of
God hath made me. Job xxxiii. 4.
The One Almighty is our trust. Commit the keep
ing of their souls to him, as unto a faithful Creator.
-1 Pet. iv. 19.

in.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost arc omi" -
present.

1. Do not I fill heaven and earth ? saith the Lord.

Jer. xxiii. 24.

2. Lo, I am with you alway. Matt, xxviii. 20.

3. Whither shall I go from thy Spirit ? Psa.

cxxxix. 7.

The One omnipresent God is our trust. He is not
far from every one of us ; for in him we live, and move,
and have our being. Acts xvii. 27, 28.

144 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

IV.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are incom
prehensible and omniscient.

1. No one knoweth the Father, save the Son. Matt.

xi. 27. Known unto God are all his works, etc.
Acts xv. 18.

2. No one knoweth the Son, save the Father. Matt.

xi. 27. Lord, thou knowest all things. John
xxi. 17.

3. Who being his counsellor hath taught him ?
Isai. xl. 13. The Spirit searcheth all things.
1 Cor. ii. 10.

We worship the One all-seeing God. All things are
naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we
have to do. Heb. iv. 13.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are true,
holy, and good.

1. He that sent me is true. John vii. 28. Holy

(ayte) Father. Righteous (Sucate) Father.
John xvii. 11, 25. The Lord is good. Psalm
xxxiv. 8.

2. I am .... the truth. John xiv. 6. The holy

One and the just (TOV aywv KOC rov biKaiov).
Acts iii. 14. The good Shepherd. John x. 11.

3. The Spirit is truth. 1 John v. 6. The Spirit,
the holy One. John xiv. 26. Thy Spirit is
good. Psalm cxliii. 10.

We adore the One Lord of infinite goodness. Who
shall not fear thee, 0, Lord, and glorify thy name ? for
thou only art holy. Rev. xv. 4.

VI.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost have each a
self-regulating will.

1. Him that worketh all things after the counsel of

THE HOCK OF AGES. 145

CHAP. VII.

his own will (rrji&gt; ftov\r]v TOV 0eA.7/fiaros). Eph.
i. 11.

2. The Son wills (/SovA^Tai) to reveal him. Matt.

xi. 27. Father, I will (0&o&gt;). John xvii. 24.

3. Dividing to every one severally as he wills (/3ou-

Aercu). 1 Cor. xii. 11.

We rest on the icill of him who alone is Jehovah.
The will of the Lord be done. Acts xxi. 14.

VII.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are the
fountain of life.

With thee is the fountain of life. Psa. xxxvi. 9.
God hath quickened us. Eph. ii. 4, 5.

2. In him (the Word) was life. John i. 4. The
Son quickeneth Avhoni he will. John v. 21.

3. The Spirit is life. Rom. viii. 10. Born of the

Spirit. John iii. 8.

We depend on one life-g icing God. Love the Lord
thy God, . . . cleave unto him, . . . for he is thy life.
Deut. xxx. 20.

VIII.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost strengthen,
comfort, and sanctify us.

1. Thou strengthciiedst me with strength in my

soul. Psa. cxxxviii. 3. I will comfort you.
Isai. Ixvi. 13. Sanctified by God the Father.
Jude 1.

2. I can do all things through Christ which strength-

eneth me. Phil. iv. 13. If any consolation in
Christ. Phil. ii. 1. Sanctified in Christ Jesus.
-1 Cor. i. 2.

3. Strengthened with might by his Spirit in the
inner man. Ephes. iii. 16. The Comforter, the
Holy Ghost. John xiv. 26. Being sanctified
by the Holy Ghost. Rom. xv. 16.

146 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

We trust in One God for spiritual power. My God,
my strength, in whom I will trust. Psa. xviii. 2.

IX.

The Father, the Son, and the Holt/ Ghost fill the soul
with Divine lore.

1. Every one that loveth him that begat. 1 John
v. 1. If any man love the world, the love of
the Father is not in him. 1 John ii. 15.

2. The love of Christ constraineth us. 2 Cor. v.

14. If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ.
-1 Cor. xvi. 22.

3. I beseech you for the love of the Spirit. Horn,
xv. 30. Your love in the Spirit. Col. i. 8.

The love of the One living and true God characterizes
the saint. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all
thy heart. Deut. vi. 5.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost gave the
Divine law.

1. The law of the Lord is perfect. Psa. xix. 7. The
word of our God. Isai. xl. 8. Thus saith the
Lord God. Ezek. ii. 4.

2. The law of Christ, Gal. vi. 2. The word of

Christ. Col. iii. 16. These things saith the
Son of God. Rev. ii. 18.

3. The law of the Spirit of life. Rom. viii. 2. Holy
men of God spake as they were moved by the
Holy Ghost, 2 Pet, i. 21. The Holy Ghost
said. Acts xiii. 2.

The word of One Legislator is the believer s rule.
There is one Lawgiver who is able to save. James
iv. 12.

XI.

The Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost dwell in the
hearts of believers.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 147

Cnxr. VII.

1. I will dwell in them. 2 Cor. vi. 16. God is in

you of a truth. 1 Cor. xiv. 25. Our fellowship
is with the Father. 1 John i. 3.

2. Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith. Eph.
iii. 17. Christ in you, the hope of glory. Col.
i. 27. Our fellowship .... with his Son Jesus
Christ. 1 John i. 3.

3. The Spirit dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

John xiv. 17. The communion of the Holy
Ghost. 2 Cor. xiii. 14.

The contrite heart receives One Divine guest. Thus
saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity,
I dwell with him that is of a contrite and humble
heart. Isai. Ivii. 15.

XII.

The Father, the Son, and the Hohj Ghost are, each by
himself, the supreme Jehovah and God.

1. I am Jehovah thy God. Ex. xx. 2. Thou,

Lord, art most High for evermore. Psa. xcii. 8.

2. Jehovah our God. Isai. xl. 3, with Matt. iii. 3.

(See p. 6477.) The Highest. Luke i. 76,
with Matt. xi. 10.

3. Jehovah God. Ezck. viii. 1, 3. (See p. 130

132.) The Highest. Luke i. 35.
TJic One supreme Lord God is our God for ever and
ever. Jehovah, our Elohim, One Jehovah. Deut. vi. 4.

From this brief comparison, which might be elabo
rated at far greater length, (if the reader asks for
further proof of any statement, I earnestly entreat him
to refer back to the more detailed exposition,) Scrip
ture assures us that the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Ghost, have the same Divine attributes, concur with a
mind and will and heart, personally independent but
unitedly harmonious, in the same Divine acts, and are

148 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

cf. Jones. addressed by the same Divine names. And further, wo
learn that our trust is not dispersed or confused by this
co-equal Godhead of the Sacred Three : but that (a
way of access being opened in the gospel through the
revelation of the Father in Christ by the Spirit) we
rest on, we worship, and we love One God. Thus,
these Three are One : or, in the language of the first
Article of the Church of England

" There is but One living and true God, everlasting ;
without body, parts, or passions ; of infinite power,
wisdom, and goodness ; the Maker and Preserver of
all things, both visible and invisible. And in Unity
of this Godhead, there be Three persons of one sub
stance, power, and eternity ; the Father, the Son, and
the Holy Ghost,"

(3) Are you tempted to say, such a brief article
as this enunciated by Christ himself, and recorded by
the apostles, would have settled every controversy for
ever : why, oh why, was it not contained in Scripture ?
Haply, Elihu might quell the rising suspicion. " Behold,
in this thou art not just : I will answer thee, that
God is greater than man. Why dost thou strive
against him ? for he giveth not account of any of his
matters. For God speaketh once, yea twice, but man

job xxxiii. 12 perceiveth it not." But it is by no means certain that
such an article would have settled every doubt. It
would have been handed down from age to age : many
manuscripts must needs be collated : possibly some
obscure variation might be discovered. But even if
the text were as impregnable as the opening of S.
John s Gospel, I doubt whether it would have con
vinced such minds as remain unconvinced of the God
head of Christ, after weighing those transparent de-

Eph. u. s. clarations. Saving faith is the gift of God. Granting,
hoAvever, that it had materially shortened the path by

THE ROCK OF AGES. 149

CHAP. YII.

which, sincere inquirers attain the true faith, (for Scrip
ture assures us that none, who heartily seek the Lord,
stop short of Jesus Christ,) what would have been its
effect on the church at large ? Permit me here to
quote some admirable remarks from " Cautions for the
Times."

There is another reason against the providing in Scripture of
a regular systematic statement of Christian doctrines. Sup
posing such a summary of gospel truths had been drawn up,
and could have been contrived with such exquisite skill as to be
sufficient and well adapted for all, of every age and country,
what would have been the probable result? It would have
commanded the unhesitating assent of all Christians, who would,
with deep veneration, have stored up the very words of it in
their memory, without any need of laboriously searching the rest
of the Scriptures, to ascertain its agreement with them ; which
is what we do (at least, are evidently called on to do) with a
human exposition of ihe faith : and the absence of this labour,
together with the tranquil security as to the correctness of their
belief, which would have been thus generated, would have ended
in a careless and contented apathy. There would have been . . .
no call for vigilant attention in the investigation of truth none
of that effort of mind which is now requisite, in comparing one
passage with another, and collecting instruction from the scat
tered, oblique, and incidental references to various doctrines in
the existing Scriptures ; and in consequence none of that excite
ment of the best feelings, and that improvement of the heart,
which are the natural and, doubtless, the designed result of an
humble, diligent, and sincere study of the Christian Scriptures.

lu fact all study, properly so called, of the rest of Scripture
all lively interest in its perusal would have nearly been super
seded by such an inspired compendium of doctrine ; to which
alone, as by far the most convenient for that pin-pose, habitual
reference woidd have been made in any question that might
arise. Both would have been regarded indeed as of Divine
authority ; but the compendium as the fused and purified metal ;

150 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

the other as the mine containing the crude ore. And the com
pendium itself being not, like the existing Scriptures, that front
idiich the faith is to be learned, but the very tldng to lie learned,
would have come to be regarded by most with an indolent, un
thinking veneration, which would have exercised little or no
influence on the character. Their orthodoxy would have been
as it were petrified ; like the bodies of those animals we read of
incnisted in the ice of the polar regions firm fixed, indeed,
and preserved unchangeable ; but cold, motionless, lifeless. It
is only when our energies are roused, and our faculties exercised,
and our attention kept awake by an ardent pursuit of truth, and
anxious watchfulness against error when, in short, we feel our
selves to be doing something towards acquiring, or retaining, or
improving our knowledge it is then only that that knowledge
makes the requisite practical impression on the heart and on
the conduct.

To the church, then, has her all-wise Founder left the office
of teaching to the Scriptures, that of proving the Christian
doctrine : to the Scriptures, he has left the delineation of Chris
tian principles to each church, the application of those
principles, in their symbols or articles of religion in their
forms of worship and in their ecclesiastical regulations. pp.
443, 444.

How beautiful is the analogy here between the word
of God and the natural creation. Had we been told
that the earth was to be so arranged that eight hun
dred millions of human beings could live thereon,
should we not, in thought, have done away with the
vast unproductive forests, the superfluous mountains,
the exorbitant ocean, and have divided it into so
many plots for agriculture, like the veriest pauper
field? This was not God s way. The woods, and
hills, and seas minister to the clouds, and the clouds
drop fatness on the fertile field and the luxurious
plain ; and thus he opens his hand and supplies all
things living with plenteousness. So is it with the

THE ROCK OF AGES. 151

CHAI-. VII.

Scriptures of truth. We should, perhaps, have ex
pected definitions, and articles, and formularies, and
canons, and creeds. This was not God s method.
There is the incident of touching simplicity, the
solemn majesty of law, the flame of patriotic zeal, the
heart-experience which speaks to our heart, the grand
est poetry, the most magnificent songs of praise, the
rapid changes on the prophetic harp, the inimitable
story of redeeming love, the calm deductions of logical
.argument, the echo of angelic joy, the unbarring of
the gates of glory, and the reflexion of the light of
eternity. And yet, amid all these manifold combina
tions, the simple rule of our faith in the One living
and true God Father, Son, and Spirit, the source of
creation, redemption, and saiictification, is marked
out with a precision that he who runs may read.

But, do you ask, is it needful for every believer to
pass through such a long process of proof as even this
little treatise sets forth ? Assuredly not. The Bible
is eminently the poor man s book. These things are
hidden from the wise and prudent, and revealed unto
babes. And to surli a child-like mind a very few M.itt.^i ; 25;

&lt;J XVIll. ".

simple truths generally carry conviction, and with
conviction life and peace. " I am God, and beside me
there is no Saviour." " Behold the Lamb of God, which
taketh away the sin of the world." " I will send the
Comforter to you." His Father, his Redeemer, his
Sanctifier, are equally indispensable to him : and he
knows that he was baptized into the name of the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. He needs no
more. "Without any laboured syllogisms, he believes
these Three are One. The truth finds him. He does
not expect to fathom the mystery ; but his whole heart
embraces that which satisfies his whole necessity.
If, however, doubts and suspicions assail these first

152 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CDAP. VII,

principles when implanted, or keep back an inquirer
from believing them, then the word of God, reverently
consulted, affords a complete answer to every, what I
may call, rational objection. The armoury supplies a
weapon for every encounter. We are ready to give

i Pet. ui. is. every man a reason of the hope that is in us. There
fore, if held back by these doubts from faith in Christ,
you must give yourself, heart and soul, to this mo
mentous inquiry ; you must shake off that deadly in
difference which would leave this question undecided ;
you must watch and pray ; and then be assured the
promise shall never fail. " I know the thoughts that
I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace
and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then
shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto
me, and I will hearken unto you ; and ye shall seek
me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all

Jer. xxix. ii your heart."

Mortal life, stretching forth into immortality, is to
each man like a precious cabinet stored with priceless
jewels. But the cabinet is locked, and to those without
Christ the key is wanting. The gospel is that key.
It is proffered to all. How many, alas, carelessly
thrust it aside ! But some, you may think with a
modest caution, refuse to make the trial, lest haply
they should hamper the lock, until they have been
assured by a careful sifting of documents, by a com
paring of outlines of the hidden wards with the key,
and by other infallible proofs, that the key in question
was the one made and designed for the cabinet. This
investigation they pursue with untiring assiduity, until,
satisfied of the credibility of the evidence adduced,
they try the bolt with a trembling hand ; it yields to
the touch and the cabinet is their own : they are rich
for ever. Many others, however, have more trustful-

THE ROCK OF AGES. 153

CUAP. VIL.

ness, and less fearfulness. They feel their poverty ;
they believe the offer is to be relied on ; they know
that many of their neighbours have found it so ; and
without further delay they also try the lock : it yields,
and the cabinet is theirs. You can never argue them
out of their persuasion that the key they hold in their
hands is the key of the cabinet. No other unlocks it ;
and this does. That is enough for them. They may
not have so intelligent a knowledge of the way in
which that elaborate key turns back one secret spring
after another : that knowledge, whenever acquired,
belongs to the patient pains-taking investigator : but
both alike possess the jewels.

So is it with the gospel of Jesus Christ : it exactly
ills the intricate wards of the human heart. It un
locks the inestimable treasures of human life. lie that
uses it is rich indeed; rich towards God; rich for
eternity. Whether he has been led to liiith in Christ
through long and painful inquiries, as may be the
case especially with those who have much time for
thought and keen intellectual powers ; or whether
with a more confiding alacrity, which is the experi
ence of most Christians, (for "God hath chosen ihe
poor of this world rich in faith,") he has obeyed the Jium.- H. :
gospel at once, the life-giving efficacy is the same.
"As many as received him, to them gave he power to
become the sons of God." The question is one of obe- John ;. ,2.
dience or of disobedience. " The mystery [of the gos
pel of Jesus Christ] is now according to the command
ment of the everlasting God made known, to all nations,

for THE OBEDIENCE OF FAITH." Obedience IS life ; R m. xvi. 25,

" He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life : "
and disobedience is death ; for the same Scripture con
tinues, "He that believeth not the Son shall not see
life ; but the wrath of God abideth on him." joim m.so.

n 3

154 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. Vn.

(4) Do you say, Is not a trustful knowledge of God
the Father sufficient ? Scripture answers, There is no
true knowledge of God the Father, except in God the
Son : for Jesus Christ says, " I am the way, the truth,
and the life ; no man cometh unto the Father, but by

joim xiv. c. me." And S. John writes, " Whosoever denieth the

jjohnii. 23. Son, the same hath not the Father." And again,
"Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the
doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in
the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and
John 9. the Son." Now Scripture has proved to us the co-
essential Godhead of the Son with the Father : and, if
once the Holy Spirit convince you of this, you will be
the first to ask, what can denial of the Son be, if to
deny his Godhead be not this negation ? With your
keen sense of honour, you will then be the first to
acknowledge that such denial destroys the glory of his
person ; tears the crown from his brow ; empties the
atonement of its virtue ; and, however undcsignedly,
charges the church of Christ with idolatry, and the
word of God with equivocation and untruthfulness.
For he who denies the Deity of our Lord " belie veth

i John v. 10. not the record that God hath given of his Son." There
are indeed many, who professedly believing the Di
vinity of the Son of God, by their works deny him :
theirs, perhaps, is an aggravated guilt : but those
who professedly disbelieve his Divinity, seeing that
such unbelief extracts all saving efficacy from his
work, are rejecting the only "name under heaven

Acts iv. 12. given among men, whereby we must be saved."

Further do you say, God is love, and will not visit
with eternal condemnation the creatures of his hand ?
My friends, you are making to yourselves a God -of
your own imagination, a God of mercy and compassion
only, but without holy jealousy and righteousness.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 155

CHAI . VII.

Such a one is not the God of creation, or of provi
dence, or of the Bible. He is not the God of creation,
for even there, amid the abounding evidence of his
goodness, there are things which tell of his severity ;
there is not only the sunshine, and the summer, and
the dew, and the calm, but also the terrible darkness,
and the wintry blast, and the storm, and the volcano.
Such a one is not the God of permissive providence :
for there is not only the happy home, and prattling
childhood, and the mart of peaceful merchandise, and
the honourable senate, but also the chamber of suf
fering, and the creeping infirmities of age, and the
wail of oppression, and the battle-field strewn with
corpses. Xor is such a one the God of the Bible :
God is love indeed but love embraces all his attri
butes, not mercy only, but righteousness likewise :
" for love is strong as death : jealousy is hard as the
grave : the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a
most vehement flame." Oh, surelv not in vain was sun- \m. &gt;;.

* Sec margin.

the cry of the gospel herald, " Flee from the wrath to
come." Xot in vain the warning of Jesus Christ, " If - AI:i - &gt; "
ye believe not that I am In , ye shall die in your sins." Jim \iii.2.
Xot in vain the awakening question of &gt;S. Peter,
" AVhat shall the end be of them that obey not the
gospel of God ? " i Pet. iv. 17.

It is so often asserted that the inflexible righteous
ness manifested under the old dispensation, as in the
deluge, in the destruction of the cities of the plain, in
the plagues on Egypt, or in the chastisements on
Israel, has been modified by the " milder genius of the
gospel" though they who make the assertion forget, see i.ke xvii.
that these cases are adduced as examples in the Xew Rom. iT. i:.
Testament, that I bring before you in the note below 1 1 Cor x - --"

1 Testimony under the new covenant to the righteous severity of God.
ilatt. iii. 7 12, John Baptist \varns to flee from the wrath to come.

156 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VJI.

some portion of the witness of the New Testament to
the immutable justice of God. I fully grant you that

Matt. v. 26 29, Jesus speaks of the eternal prison, and of the
unholy being cast into bell.

vii. 13, of the broad way leading to destruction ; and ver.

23, of the hour when he will say, Depart from me.
[These last are taken from the sermon on the mount, in
which the Fatherly character of God shines as a golden
thread interwoven throughout.]

viii. 12, the children of the kingdom cast out into outer

darkness.

x. 15, more tolerable for Sodom in the day of judgment ;

and ver. 28, " Fear him which is able to destroy both
soul and body in hell."
[This last in closest connexion with filial trust towards God.]

xi. 20 24, the woes on Choraziu.

xii. 32, the unpardonable sin.

xiii. 41, 42, 49, 50, the judgment of the wicked.

xviii. 6 9, the end of those who cause offences.

xxi. 44, the stone falling on the disobedient.

xxii. 13, the guest expelled into outer darkness.

xxiii. the woes on the Pharisees.

- xxiv. the foretold destruction of Jerusalem, typical of the

last judgment.

xxv. 12, the foolish virgins disowned ; ver. 30, the unprofit

able servant cast out ; ver. 41, the sentence upon those
on the left hand "Depart from me, ye cursed, into
everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels."

Mark xvi. 1C, after the resurrection, the same inflexible law
" He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved ; but
he that believeth not shall be damned."

Luke xii. 46, the unfaithful servant s end.

xiii. 28, a scene of future remorse sketched, which the

prescient Christ only could sketch.

xvi. 22, 23, " the rich man also died and was buried ; and in

hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments."

xvii. 26 30, the deluge and the destruction of Sodom,

types of the end of the wicked at the second Advent.
John iii. 18, the unbeliever condemned already ; and ver. 30, "the
wrath of God abideth on him."

THE ROCK OF AGES. 157

CHAP. VII.

now God is withholding his judgments : it is the day
of grace, it is the time of love, the goodness of God

John v. 29, the resurrection of damnation.

viii. 24, ye shall die in your sins.
Acts iii. 23, the disobedient soul destroyed.

v. 1 11, the judgment on Ananias and Sapphira.

xiii. 40, 41, see the peroration of S. Paul s sermon at Ant inch :

xxviii. 25 27, and of his address to the Jews.

Horn. i. IS, the wrath of God revealed against all ungodliness.

ii. 4 11, wrath treasured up against the day of wrath ;

indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, rendered
to every evil doer.

vi. 23, the wages of sin is death.

xii. 11), " Vengeance is mine ; I will repay, saith the Lord."

1 Cor. iii. 17. it any man, etc., him shall God destroy.

vi. !), the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God."
xvi. 22, " If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him
be Anathema Maranatha."

2 Cor. ii. 1C, to them that perish we arc the savour of death unto

death,
iv. 3, the gospel hid in them that are lost.

Gal. i. S, the solemn anathema on those who pervert the gospel,
vi. S, he that sowcth to his llcsh .... reaping corruption.

Kph. ii. 3, we were children of wrath.

Phil. iii. IS, 19, " 1 tell you, even weeping, that they are the ene
mies of the cross of Christ : whose end is destruction."

2 Thess. i. 7 9, the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven " in
tlaming tire, taking vengeance on them that know not
God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord .lesus
Christ; who shall be punished with an everlasting de
struction . . . ."

ii. 12, "that they all might be damned who believed not the

truth."

Hcb. ii. 3, "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation ?"
x. 27 31, " a certain fearful looking for of judgment and liery

indignation, which shall devour the adversaries

It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
xii. 2 J, " for our God is a consuming fire."

James ii. 10, "Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend
in one point, he is guilty of all."

158 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

leadeth us to repentance : but the season is limited,
i,uke xiii. 25. and " when once the master of the house is risen up,
and hath shut to the door," then the last hour of pardon
ing mercy will have passed away, and he whose name
is love declares, " Then shall they call upon me, but I
will not answer; ye shall seek me early, but ye shall
Prov. i. as. not find me." But if Jesus wept, when foretelling
the judgments on Jerusalem, well may the heart of a
poor pardoned sinner bleed, to gather such cumulative
proof of his holy indignation. So terrible is the evi
dence that, like Moses at Sinai, " I exceedingly fear
Htb.xii. 21. and quake." If it were only one isolated passage,
you might urge it was figurative language : but here

1 Pet. ii. 8, [Jesus Christ] "a stone of stumbling, and a rock of
offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being
disobedient : whereunto also they were appointed."

1 Pet. iv. 17, 18, " what shall the end be of them that obey not the

gospel of God ? . . . . where shall the ungodly and the
sinner appear ? "

2 Pet. ii. 1 7, " to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever."

iii. 7, the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
1 John v. 19, the whole world lieth in wickedness.

Jude 14, 15, the Lord cometh .... to execute judgment.
Rev. vi. 16, hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the
throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.

xix. 3, her smoke rose up for ever and ever.

15, " and out of his mouth goeth forth a sharp sword, that

with it he should smite the nations ; and he shall rule
them with a rod of iron, and he treadeth the wine-press
of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God."

xx. 15, " and whosoever was not found written in the book

of life was cast into the lake of fire."

xxi. 8, " but the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable,

and murderers, and whoremongers, and idolaters, and all
liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with
fire and brimstone : which is the second death . . . . "

xxii. 11, "he that is unjust, let him be unjust still ; and he

that is filthy, let him be filthy still."

THE ROCK OF AGES. 150

CHIP. VII.

it is written in history, prophecy, sermon, epistle,
vision, all alike proving that our God is a consuming
fire, and that of the enemies of the cross the end is
destruction. I repeat, you may conceive a God of
compassion only, and fall down and worship him, but
such a one is not the righteous Judge of all the
earth : and you may beautify the name of the Father,
whom you adore, with every trait of benevolence, and
tenderness, and grace ; but it is not the name of the
one living and true God, for that is the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

God forbid that I should write with anything of
bitterness or pride. I feel far too deeply for that.
You will not accuse me of it. Shipwrecked in one
common fall with us, you have adopted principles of
your own, and staked vour immortality of weal or woe
upon them. "We have embarked upon that wo know
to be the only true life-boat : and with all the impor
tunity of affection, those kindlings of common hu
manity which bind xis together, we cry to you
I Yiends, that raft of your own construction cannot
survive the tempest. Come with us. Yet there is
room. Yet there is time. Our life-boat cannot sink.
Our pilot knows the port.

Let us recur to our position before God, as sketched
from Scripture in the opening of this treatise. The
Bible represented us as guilty, strengthless, and in
darkness. Whatever moral excellences may adorn
us in the sight of man ; philanthropy, generosity,
tenderness, integrity still the penetrating law, the
law of perfect love, reveals innumerable violations of
our nearest and noblest duties. "We are sinners ; and
as sinners, exposed to all this righteous wrath in the
day of wrath.

Once realize this, and our false peace is broken up

160 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

for ever. Our earthly gaiety is gone. Life, without
our Father s sinile, is not worth the living. It is to
flit through a mazy labyrinth of pain and pleasure, to
foster affections which must wither to their roots, and
to cherish hopes which must expire one by one. The
irrepressible question rises again to our lips, What
must I do to be saved ? Where shall we find a hiding-
place ? " The name of the Lord is a strong tower :

iw. xviu. 10. the righteous runneth into it, and is safe." What is
his name ? the same that Moses heard in the cleft of
the rock " The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and
gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness
and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving
iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by 110
means clear the guilty ; visiting the iniquity of the
fathers upon the children, and upon the children s
children, unto the third and to the fourth genera-

xoi xxxiv. tion."

6, 7.

How then can he clear us, the guilty ? For " we
are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses
are as filthy rags ; and we all do fade as a leaf ; and
sai. ixiv. e. our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."

May the Lord of his sovereign mercy impress his
own reply on my heart and on yours, by the power of
the Holy Ghost :

Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it
saith to them who are under the law ; that every mouth may be
stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. There
fore by the deeds of the law there shall be no flesh justified in
his sight ; for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

But now the righteousness of God without the law is mani
fested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets ; even the
righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all
and upon all them that believe : for there is no difference ;

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

THE ROCK OF AGES. 161

.CHIP. vn.

being justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that
is in Christ Jesus :

Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith
in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of
sins that are past, through the forbearance of God ; to declare, I
say, at this time, his righteousness : that he might be just, and
the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Rom. iii. 19 26.

How blessed, how Divine a salvation ! Another has
offered an atoning sacrifice for our sins ; another im
parts his righteousness to all who believe. The claims
of the law are satisfied ; for a Victim of infinite worth
has satisfied them. Emmanuel, God with us, is surety Rom. \. &gt;-,.
for us. Christ died for the ungodly, the Just for the i p c t. ui. i*.
unjust, that he might bring us to God. " It is the blood
which, maketh an atonement for the soul:" not the i. e \. xui. n.
blood of bulls and of goats, but the blood of Jesus IM.. .\. 4.
Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. And now uohni. 7.
God in Christ reconciles the world unto himself, not
imputing their trespasses unto them. And we are
ambassadors for Christ ; as though God did beseech you
by us, we pray you in Christ s stead be ye reconciled
to God ; for he hath made him who knew no sin to be
sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of
God in him. unexampled love ! The Father sent 2001-. v.;y-2i.
the Son to be the Saviour of the world. God the Fa- i joimiv. u.
ther loving us with everlasting love : God the Son
incarnate, crucified, risen, glorified, interceding. Here
" Mercy and truth are met together ; righteousness
and peace have kissed each other." i^i. ixxxv. ic.

But once more : " Jesus says, No one can come unto
me except the Father which hath sent me draw him." joim\i. .
And yet again : " No one cometh unto the Father, but
by me." It is a circle of light and love.. We go j hn xiv. &lt;;.
round about it. How are we to enter it ? Jesus
answers, " When the Comforter is come, whom I will

162 THE ROCK OF AGES.

.:HAP. VII.

joim xv. 26. send unto you from the Father, he shall testify of me.

... he will guide you unto all truth. ... he shall re-

ivi.is,u. ceive of mine, and shall show it unto you." Here is

the power of entrance. That which is born of the

Spirit is spirit.

Oh blessed new-born soul ! washed in the blood of
Christ, clothed in his spotless goodness, drawn by his
quickening Spirit, it is brought to the footstool of the
throne of paternal love. It lives. It loves. All the
affections gush forth from a well of water springing
up into everlasting life. The Trinity in Unity is no
longer an abstract doctrine alone, but it interpene
trates our spiritual being. The Father and the Son
have come unto us, and in the communion of the

see John xiv. Spirit make their abode with us: and thus dwelling
in love we dwell in God, for GOD is LOVE.

(5) God is love. Many, from these words alone,
have argued the necessity of a co- eternal and a co
equal plurality in unity, as a deduction from that
absolute perfection of the Divine nature which re
quires every possible excellence : co-eternal ; for love
implies, at least, that there be One who loves, and One
who being loved reciprocates that love ; and, therefore,
if the Son were not from everlasting (as the Father
himself), the first and the last, the beginning and the
ending ; then before the creation of our world, or of
any worlds, through the receding cycles of a past
eternity, they have contended that " the Divine mind
woxdd have stood in an immense solitariness," without
reciprocity of affection, and without communion of
intellectual enjoyment : and co-equal ; for love in its
perfection requires similarity and indeed equality of
nature, (as God records of Adam in Paradise, " there
&en. ii. 20. was not found an help meet for him,") and, therefore,

THE ROCK OF AGES. 163

CHAP. VII.

whatever you take away from either the one who
loves or the one who is loved, however you disparage
either in comparison of the other, you so far destroy
the propriety and completeness of the definition " God
is Love." k

k See Alford s sermons on Divine Love : and P. Smith s Testi
mony., Appendix III., from which some of the clauses in above
paragraph are taken.

The following beautiful extracts from a German treatise, by
Sartorius, have been translated and sent me by a friend.

" That which is asserted in theological compendiums with ab
stract and often negative precision of the Being and attributes of
God, is gathered together in a living, comprehensive, and fertile
idea in that great dictum of the apostle, GOD is LOVE. This say
ing of the Holy Spirit comes from the depths of the Godhead. It
is the Divine axiom beyond which we cannot fathom, and from
which all flows ; the first principle of our science, as well as the
basis of our life. The first article of our creed expresses this :
God the Father is equal to God is love.

[He then contrasts the true opposites / and tho&gt;i, with the false
opposites of some modern philosophy, /and not /.]

"Love presupposes consciousness personality: in the true
sense we cannot love a thing ; only persons can love or truly be
loved. In the higher Divine sense, love is the unity or union of
two distinct personalities. And this in the highest sense the
Triune God is, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit of Love.

God is love : whatever we may say of God s spiritual,

infinite, eternal Being ; of his all-might and all-wisdom ; of his
holiness, justice, and truth ; of his glory and blessedness ; is it
not all gathered up in the idea of absolute love ? How little is
said in asserting that God is a Spirit, if his mere negative imma
teriality and invisibility are meant : or when thinking and willing
are ascribed to him, without any character to determine the
quality of this thinking and willing. Love is spirit, is light, and
life ; is conscious, personal life, not merely subjectively absorbed
in itself, but expanding, and manifesting, and objectively com
municating itself ; filling all with itself, and gathering all unto it
self. Infinite and eternal are mere negative abstractions, if they

164 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

But leaving this most profound mystery, and taking
with you those living truths which are necessary to
our salvation, I pray you now to return to the study
of the sacred volume. You will look vainly for any
formal creed ; but what is infinitely more valuable to
the earnest student and the docile believer, you will
find the threefold and yet united work of the ever
blessed God, Father, Son, and Spirit, on our be
half.

If we ask, Whence came I, and to whom do I be
long ? the Bible answers we are the creatures of God
the Father, of whom are all things ; of God the Son,
by whom all things were made ; of God the Spirit,
who gave us life : of these Three who are One in
essence, and who in unity of counsel determined, " Let
Gen. i. 2c. us ma k e man in our image."

If, feeling our low and lost estate, we cry What
must I do to be saved ? Jesus answers, " Ye must be
born again. That which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
For God so loved the world that he gave his only-

are not contemplated as filled with love, whose nature it is to have
no limits, and never to fail.

" Holiness, what is it but holy love, which only wills the holy
and the good (the God-like), and abhors the evil (ungodly), be
cause it brings ruin ? And righteousness, what is it but the order,
the law of love, and its execution ? God is love, not only as Cre
ator and Preserver of the world, but in himself, from eternity,
eternal love in person, and surely in more than One Person ; for
love consists in the unity of [at least] two persons. The subject
of love is not conceivable without the object, nor personal love
without a persona] object ; without which it would be but self-
seeking. The / must have a Thou ; the eternal / an eternal
Thou ; eternal love an eternal object."

I give the above fragments for their intrinsic worth, without
pledging myself to all the sentiments of an essay which I have
not read.

THE ROCK OF AGES. 165

CHAP. VII.
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should

O *

not perish, but have eternal life."

If now craving that new birth we begin to long for
that Spirit with indescribable desire, our Lord assures
us, " I will pray the Father ; and he shall give you an
other Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever." John xiir - 18 -

If we ask how this, so great a salvation, was accom
plished, the apostle replies, " Christ, through the
Eternal Spirit, offered himself, without spot, to God ; "
and thus " his blood purges our conscience from dead
works to serve the living and true God." H - &gt;b - &gt;* *

If we draw nigh to that great High Priest, crying,
Lord, save me or I perish ; He answers, " The Spirit
of the Lord God is upon me ; because the Lord hath
anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek ;
he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to
proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of
the prison to them that are bound ; to proclaim the
acceptable year of the Lord." Isai - Lxi - &gt;&gt; -

If we turn to the pages of the gospel histories, and
humbly ask for some manifestation of this stupendous
mystery, we read " Jesus being baptized, and pray
ing, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Ghost de
scended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and
a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my
beloved Son : in thee I am well pleased." Luke HI. : 1,22.

If, as we ponder the threefold benediction pro
nounced on the worshipping Israelites, "The Lord
bless thee and keep thee : the Lord make his face shine
upon thee, and be gracious unto thee : the Lord lift up
his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace : " and
observe how this threefold blessing mysteriously co
alesced in one covenant name, for it is added, " They
shall put my name upon the children of Israel, and I will
bless them : " if, pondering these things, we cry, Bless NU ,L &lt;&gt; &gt; ss ~

166 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAV. VII.

me, even me also, O my Father ; we shall hear a still
small voice saying to us, The blessings of that name
into which you were baptized be yours in deed and in
truth, and in the power of spiritual life, " the name of
the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."

If, emboldened, we would now interpret this more
plainly, the doctrine drops as the rain, and distils as
the dew, in the benediction of the new covenant.
" The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of
God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with

2 cur. xiii. i4. you. Amen."

We betake ourselves to prayer ; how easy the new
and living way : " Through Jesus we have access by

Ejih. si. is. one Spirit unto the Father." And while kneeling at
the throne of grace how deep the fellowship : " The
Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we
are the children of God : and if children, then heirs ;

Rom. via. 16, heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ."

If we are ever tempted to draw back from the hope
of the gospel, how awful does the provocation of the
Triune Jehovah appear when Scripture, warning us of
the wrath to come, demands " Of how much sorer
punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy,
who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath
counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was
sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto
the Spirit of grace ? For we know him that hath said,
Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense,
saith the Lord."

"We are stablished in the faith : but we long to see
this great mystery -in living connexion with the com
munion of saints, with the better covenant of promise,
and with all the framework of human society : this
too is vouchsafed : for we read, " There is one body,
and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope

THE ROCK OF AGES. 167

CHAP. vir.

your calling ; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one
God and Father of all, who is above all, and through
all, and in you all." Eph.iv.4-e.

Now we see that all things are ours, who are " elect
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through saiictification of the Spirit, unto obedience
and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ;" for i Pet. 12.
what, in the confidence of faith we ask, shall separate
us from the love of God, who " hath from the begin
ning chosen us to salvation through sanctification of
the Spirit and belief of the truth, .... to the obtain
ing of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ ? " - ess - " ls -

This assurance of faith is no idle self-confidence, for
we hear the apostle s earnest entreaty : " But ye,
beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy
faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, keep yourselves in
the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord
Jesus Christ unto eternal life." Jade 20, 21.

And is now the need of our soul irrepressible for
suitable language in which to express the adoring
gratitude of our hearts, let us fall low on our faces
with the veiled seraphim, and cry, " Holy, holy, holy,
is the Lord of hosts. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God isai. \-i. 2, s.
Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come." Rev. iv. s.

Yes, the pure white light which fills the firmament
of heaven, and imbues the clouds with brightness, and
paints the inimitable beauty of every colour which de
lights us, is only a faint emblem of that glorious name
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Ghost which alone can penetrate the depths of
the human heart ; which alone irradiates the mysteries
of time and the darkness of the shadow of death ; and Ezek. i. M.
which has spanned the throne of the Eternal with the
emerald rainbow of everlasting peace Bev - iT - ^

168 THE ROCK OF AGES.

CHAP. VII.

And here I must close. At the beginning of this
essay I ventured to allude to past personal conflicts.
My faith was sorely tried ; and I often thought, as
many others have done, that Satan exhausted his
quiver on my battered shield. But unutterably pain
ful as those days of struggle were to me, I should
number them among the most golden of my life, if
they taught me to remove one obstacle from the path
of those who are feeling after Jesus, my Saviour and
my God. I was at times constrained to cry in bitter
ness of soul, " All thy billows are gone over me,"
though an unseen hand kept me clinging to him who
was my life, like the limpet to the rock, buffeted by
every wave of the fretting sea. But gladly shall I
have suffered the tempest, if God may enable me
thereby to stretch forth a helping hand to those who
are sinking in the deep waters, until their feet are
planted on the Rock of Ages. Then shall we shortly
stand together in his presence, where is fulness of joy,
and cast our crowns before him on whose head are
many crowns, and sing the everlasting song, " Unto
him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his
own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto
God and his Father, to him be glory and dominion for
ever and ever." The Lord, of his infinite mercy,
grant this by the power of the Holy Ghost, for Jesus
Christ s sake. Amen and Amen.

THE END.

SCRIPTURE INDEX.

To have tabulated all the verses quoted in the Essay would have made this Index
far too voluminous. I have therefore only noted those passages more particularly
discussed or illustrated. These however will, I hope, with the full summary of the
argument giveu in the table of Contents, afford a sufficient clue to the rest.

Genesis i. 1
-26

iii. 15

vi. 3

xxxii. 30
Exodus xxxiii. 20

xxxiv. 0, 7

Leviticus xvii. 11
^Numbers vi. 23 27
xi. 17 ...
Deut. vi. 4, 5

- xxx. 20 ...

xxxiii. ~27 ...
Judges vi. -2L

2 Samuel xxiii. -
Nehemiah ix. 5 7

-27

Job xxxiii. 12 11
Psalm ii. 2 12 ...

xviii. 2

xlix. 7, S, ]5

xc. 1G ...

xcv. ( J ...

ex. 1 7 ...

cxxxvi. 1 i

cxxxix. 7 ...
Isaiah i. 2

vi. 5

vii. 11

Elobim created ...

Let us make

The seed of the woman

My Spirit

I have seen God face to face

Thou canst not sec my face ...

The name of the Lord

Whose name is Jealous

It is the blood ...

The Lord bless tluv

Take of the Spirit ..,

Jehovah our Elohim OS, (note)

He is thy life

The Eternal God thy refuge ...

Jehovah Shalom

The Spirit of the Lord

Saviours who saved them
He giveth not account

My God my strength
None can redeem, etc.
Thou hast been our dwelling
Let us worship, etc.

Jehovah alone doeth great wonders
Go from thy Spirit
I have nourished
Mine eves have seen

(note) 137
... 137, 16 A

... -2:\, V.i

100

\-2

1G1

1G5

115

138, 11G, 147

145

143

131

... 15,33

... 102, 107

113

... 24, Sl

125

131

120

... 45, 65

124, (note) 137

170

SCRIPTURE INDEX.

A stone of stumbling

The Spirit of Jehovah

He will swallow up death

Men and not God

A man shall be a covert

Prepare yc the way of Jehovah

Who hath directed the Spirit

My glory will I not

A God that hidest thyself

I said not, Seek me in vain ...

The Lord God and his Spirit sent
I, even I, etc.

Thy Maker is thy husband ...
The high and lofty One
The Spirit of the Lord on me
They vexed his Holy Spirit ...
Cursed be the man, etc.
The Lord our righteousness ..

Isaiah viii. 13, 14
- ix. 6

xi. 2 4 ...

xxv. 8

xxxi. 1 6

xxxii. 2

xl. 3

- 12, 14 ...

xlii. 8

xlv. 15 ...

19 ...
- 2125
xlviii. 16 ...

li. 1215 ...
liii. 112 ...

liv. 5

Ivii. 15
Ixi. 1

Ixiii. 1014
Jeremiah xvii. 5 -3
xxiii. G ...
Ezekiel i. 26 28
xx. 11, 12 My statutes

xxxvii. 9 14 Come, breath ...
Daniel ix. 24 26 Messiah

Hosea xii. 3, 4 ... Power with God
Micah v. 2 ... I rom everlasting

Haggai ii. 7 ... The desire of all nations

Zech. iii. 9, and iv. 10 Seven eyes

He whom they pierced

My fellow

One Lord

The Sun of righteousness

Prepare ye the way

It is written

Thou shalt worship

xii. 10
- xiii. 7

xiv. 9
Malachi iv. 2
Matthew iii. 3

iv. 6

-10 ..
v. 26, 29
-48 ..
vi. 913
vii. 13, 23

viii. 2

Be perfect even as
The Lord s prayer

Lord, if thou wilt

PAGB
65

... 24, 90
90, (note) 113
37
11
40
64

... 122, 143

... 8, 38, 66

me ... 83

24, 25, 90, 95

41, (note) 137

147

(note) 114, 165
130

... 14, 78

... 24, 38

24, 47, 168

125
24

... 45,46

18, 32, 143

(note) 113
65
90
68
24
64
2

(note) 156
104

... 38, 39

156

SCRIPTURE INDEX. 171

PAGB

Matthew viii. 25 ... Lord, save us ... ... ... 50

ix. 18 ... Come and lay thy hand ... ... 50

xi. 27 ... He to whom the Son ... 20,101,105

xii. 32 ... Speaketh against the Holy Ghost ... 118

xiv. 33 ... Of a truth thou art ... ... 50

xv. 25 ... Lord, help me ... ... ... 50

xviii. 20 ... Where two or three ... ... 19

26 ... And worshipped him ... ... 49

xix. 16, .17 None good but One ... ... 20, 94

20 ... With God all things possible ... 104

xx. 23 ... Not mine to give except ... ... 94

- xxi. 9 ... Hosanua in the highest ... ... 51

44 ... Whosoever shall fall ... ... 100

xxii. 37, 39 Thou shalt love ... ... 5

xxviii. 19, 20 Go ye and disciple (note) 19, 58, 112, 143

Mark ix. 23 ... All tilings possible ... ... 104

- xiii. 32 ... Neither the Son ... 90, (note) 91 93
Luke ii. 40 52 ... Childhood of Jesus ... ... 85,90

iii. 21, 22 ... The heaven was opened, etc. ... 112, 1G5

- x. 1C ... lie that heareth you ... ...102,100

John i. 1 LS ... ... ... 18,20,37,71,72,107

ii. 19 ... 1 will raise it up ... ... 95

iii. 6 10 ... Yc must be born again ... -27, 95, 165

-36 ... Jle that belicveth ... ... 153

iv. 10 ... Thou wouldst have asked ... ... 51

v. 17 29 ... ... 20,74,93,107

30 ... I can of myself do nothing ... 89, (note) 91 93

vi. 38 ... Not my own will ... 17,88,90
viii. 17 ... The testimony of two ... ... 17

58 ... Before Abraham was 1 am ... ... 18

x. 14, 15 ... The good Shepherd ... 20,41,90

-17 ... No one laketh it ... ... 95

30 ... I and my Father arc One ... ... 106

-35 ... He called them gods ... ...102,107

xii. 41 ... Saw his glory and spake ... ... 45, 65

xiv. 1 ... Believe in God, believe in rne ... 27

- 6 ... I am the way ... ... ... 154,161

- 10 ... My Father doeth the works ... ... 89

- 9 ... He that hath seen me ... ... 106

- 10 ... The Father in me ... ... 97

12 . Greater works than these ...102,106

172

SCRIPTURE INDEX.

John xiv. 16

- 21, 23 ...

_ , 28

xv. 9

. ^5

xvi. 13

xvii. 3

- 24
xix. 37
xxi. 17

xx. 28
Acts ii. 3

. 24

v. 3, 9

vii. 5560 ...
ix. 14, 21 ...
-34

x. 19, 20 ...

25,26 ...
-36

xiii. 2 4
xvi. 31

xvii. 27, 28 ...

xxi. 14

xxviii. 25
Romans i. 7, etc. ...

ii. 4-6 ...
iii. 1926

viii. 16

- 17 ...

ix. 5

xiv. 1012

xv. 16 ...

30 ...
xvi. 25, 26

1 Corinthians i. 2
j 2

ii. 13 ...

P.4OB

I will pray the Father ... ... 165

We will come, etc. ... ... 58

My Father is greater than I ... 88, 93

So have I loved you ... ... 101, 104

All made known to you ... ... 102, 107

He the Spirit ... ... ... 118

To know thee and Jesus Christ 3, 35, 88

That they may be one . . . 101, 106

Father, I will ... 90

Him whom they pierced . .. 65

Lord, thou knowest all things 20, 90, 144

My Lord and my God ... ... 74

Cloven tongues of fire ... ... 112

Whom God raised up ... ... 95

Lie to the Holy Ghost ... ... 131

Stephen s martyrdom ... ... 51

All that call on thy name ... ... 53

Jesus Christ maketh thee whole ... 96

The Spirit said, Arise, go ... (note) 132

Stand up, I myself ... ... 49

Lord of all ... ... ... 34, 67

Holy Ghost and with power (note) 129

The Holy Ghost said, Separate ... 127

Believe in the Lord Jesus ... -.. 30

He is not far ... ... ... 143

The will of the Lord ... ... 145

Well spake the Holy Ghost ... ... 124, 131

Grace and peace from ... ... 61

Wrath in the day of wrath ... 6, (note) 157

161

The Spirit with our spirit ... ... 133, 166

Firstborn among many brethren ... 101, 105

Who is over all God blessed ... 75

We shall all stand ... ... 38, 66

Sanctified by the Holy Ghost ... 145

The love of the Spirit ... ... 116

The obedience of faith ... ... 153

All that call upon the name of Jesus ... 52 54

Sanctified in Christ Jesus ... ... 145

Nothing but Jesus Christ ... ... 27

The Spirit searcheth ... ... 116

s( KI1TURE INDEX.

173

1 Corinthians ii. 12, 13 Comparing spiritual things ...

iii. 23

viii. 6

xi. 3
xii. 11
xiii. 12
xv. 2128

2 Corinthians iii. 18
iii. 18

xiii. 14
Galatians i. 1
Ephcsians i. 1 7

i. 1723 ...

ii. 18

iii. S, 19 ...

Philippians ii. 9 11
Colossians i. 15

i. 16 IS ...
ii. 9
iii. 11
-13
IThcss. i. 1

iii. 11 ...
-13 ...
SThess. i. 7 9 ...
ii. 13, 14
- 16, 17

iii. 5

1 Timothy ii. 5, 6
Titus i. iii.

- ii. 1013 ...
Hebrews i. 112

iv. 13

v. 9

ix. U ...

xii. 2

Christ is God s ...

One Lord

The head of Christ is God

All these worketh

Know even as I am known

Then cometh the end

By the Lord, the Spirit

The same image ...

The grace of the Lord Jesus

Paul, an apostle ...

Through him access

Unsearchable riches, etc.

All the fulness of God

One Lord

He led captivity captive

The kingdom of Christ and God

Christ gave himself

In the name of Jesus

The llrst-born of all creation

By him were all

In him dwellcth ...

Christ is all and in all

Christ forgave you

The Church in God, etc.

Now God himself ...

The Lord make you

Taking vengeance

God hath chosen, etc.

Now our Lord Jesus

The Lord direct

One God and One Mediator ...

God our Saviour, Christ our Saviour

Appearing of our great God ...

Him with whom we have to do
The author of eternal salvation
The eternal Spirit
Author and finisher of the faith

PACK

... 31, 135
97

... 68, 96

115

... 102, 107

132

... 101, 105

01, 11-2, 1GG

lilt

... J3, 111)
1GG

... 20, 33

... 105, 108

... 68, 167

... 38, 55

(note) 97

19, 20, 3:J, !J7

... 75, 10S

... -12, ( JS

9(5

127

... 31, 157

.1(57

127

... 36, 37

... 3G, 76

19, 69,98

144

... 120, 165
89

174

SCRIPTURE INDEX.

PAGB

James iv. 12 ... One lawgiver ... ... ... 146

v. 20 ... Save a soul ... ... ...102,107

1 Peter i. 2 ... Elect according to ... ...112,167

8,9 ... Ye, rejoice with joy unspeakable ... 42
ii. 7, 8 ... A stone of stumbling ... ... 65

iv. 17 ... AVhat shall the end be ... ... 155

-19 ... To him a faithful Creator ... ... 143

2 Peter i. 1 ... The righteousness of our God, etc. ... 76

4 ... Partakers of a Divine nature ...101,106
11 ... The everlasting kingdom ... ... 97

iii. IS ... Doxology to Christ ... ... 42,55

1 John i. 3 ... Truly our fellowship ... ... 59

iv. 816 Jjod is love ... ... 163, (note) 164

v. 10 ... Belie veth not the record ... ... 154

-20 ... This is the true God ... ... 35,76

2 John 9 ... Whosoever transgresseth ... ... 154

Judel ... Sanctified by God the Father ... 145

-20,21 ... Ye, beloved, building ... ... 167

Rev. i. 4 ... Seven spirits ... ... ... 112

5,6 ... Unto him that loved us ... ... 55

-8 ... I am the Almighty ... ... 20

- 8 IS ... The first and the last, etc. ... IS, 32, 143

- ii. 23 ... I am he who searcheth ... ... 21, 34

- iii. 14 ... The beginning of the creation of God (note) 97

-21 ... Will I grant to sit ... 94,102,106

- iv. 6 ... Living creatures in the midst of the throne (note) 128
-8 ... Holy, holy, holy ... ... 130

- v. 6 ... Seven Spirits ... ... 98, (note) 112, 128

8 14 ... The worship of heaven ... ... 56, 62

- xiv. 4 ... First-fruits unto God and to the Lamb ... 62

- xv. 4 ... Thou only art holy ... ... 144

- xix. 16 ... King of kings and Lord of lords ... 33

- xxi. 22, 23 ... The Lord God and the Lamb ... 63

xxii. 1 ... A pure river ... ... ... 98

- ] 3 ... The throne of God and of the Lamb ... 57,63

-8 ... I fell down to worship ... ... 48

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Quarto, 4s. cloth, gilt edges.

Melas are great heathen religious festivals held in many parts of India, and frequented
!&gt;y great multitudes. This book gives, in words suited to the capacity of children, vivid
descriptions of the people met, the scenes witnessed, and the Christian work done at one
of these great festivals. It is a companion book to " The Children of India."

The Children of India. Written for the Children of England by
one of their Friends. With Illustrations and Map. Small quarto, 4s.
bevelled boards, gilt edges.

"56, PATERNOSTER ROW, LONDON, E7c7~

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